According to Indian captain Shubman Gill, Sundar justified his selection with an all-round effort, scoring 42 runs in the first innings and then dismissing England captain Ben Stokes in the second. Gill expounded on the team’s strategic decision to use a finger spinner, emphasising the need of control and depth in subcontinent conditions.
The pick of Washington Sundar over Kuldeep Yadav in the Edgbaston Test against England was a tactical masterstroke that paid off for India, despite raising some eyebrows before to the match. The captain emphasised the importance of improved batting depth and control in spin-friendly conditions.
“It is quite enticing when you have a bowler like Kuldeep. One of the reasons I wanted to play for Washington was because he provides batting depth. In the first innings, I believe the partnership between me and Washington was crucial; without it, our lead would have been 70-80-90 runs, which is psychologically very different from 180,” Gill said at the post-match press conference.
The 25-year-old was willing to reassess the team’s bowling combination based on the conditions for the upcoming Lord’s Test, which begins on July 10.
“Even on Day 5, the ball was not moving much from the middle; it was simply moving through roughness. We reasoned that if our first batting came on a fifth-day pitch, the finger spinner would provide us with greater control if the ball was travelling away from the wicket, and that spin, in some cases, provided better control than quick bowling. So that was our attitude, but now we’ll see what kind of pitch they give us at Lord’s,” he remarked, concluding the discussion over the third Test selection.
Akash Deep’s spell gave us the confidence to win at Edgbaston: Shubman Gill
The visiting captain further praised Akash Deep’s stellar performance following India’s dominant 336-run victory over England in the second Test at Edgbaston, Birmingham. The win not only levelled the five-match series 1-1 but also marked India’s first-ever Test triumph at the iconic venue.
Gill expressed his delight at the Bihar-born’s impact, particularly his crucial breakthroughs on Day 4, dismissing key top-order batters Ben Duckett and Joe Root. Deep finished with impressive match figures of 10 for 187 (4/88 in the first innings and 6/99 in the second), playing a pivotal role in India’s historic win.
“Yesterday, I think, getting through the top order is never easy. The spell of Akash Deep, how he got those two wickets, kind of gave the confidence to everyone that we can win this Test match and when he came in this morning with the ball hitting the cracks, yes, the ball was seaming, the odd ball seaming, that’s what really instilled the confidence in all of the players that, yes, we can do it,” he told.
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