Washington Sundar voiced cautious hope as India faced severe trouble in the second Test match against South Africa in Guwahati on Monday, saying that the squad needed to "stay positive" despite handing up a significant first-innings deficit.
India lost control of the game on Monday as they were knocked out for just 201, giving South Africa a dominant 314-run lead. On almost ideal batting conditions, India's lineup struggled against a disciplined and persistent Proteas attack, primarily as a result of poor shot selection.
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When asked about India's prospects following a challenging third day at the Barsapara Stadium, Sundar responded, “Got to stay positive in life. You never know what will happen.”
When captain Rishabh Pant and wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel attempted aggressive strokes against left-arm quick Marco Jansen, they were dismissed, severely disrupting India's innings. But Sundar thought it would be unfair to attribute the collapse only on those choices.
“On another day, both those shots would have gone into the stands, and all of us would have appreciated and clapped. That’s how it is,” he said at the post-day media interaction.
“Sometimes you just have to back their plans and their skill sets as well, given the fact that they have shown a lot of proof and evidence in the past as well. Obviously, execution didn’t go the way we wanted,” he added.
Thanks to a 65-run opening combination between KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal, India made a fantastic start to the day. A flurry of wickets reduced the hosts to 122/7, with the exception of Sundar's own difficult 48 at No. 8. He had batted at No. 3 in the last Test in Kolkata.
“I would say I am happiest to bat wherever the team wants me to bat. That way, it is a lot more exciting. This is a team game. There are a lot of strategies that go into the game depending on the conditions, depending on the opposition. It is very tactical at times. Even in football, if you see good players, they might only get to play 20–30 minutes. That’s how the game is,” he said.
When analyzing India's batting strategy, Sundar admitted that there was no predetermined approach for session targets or scoring rates.
“In a five-day match, I don’t think you have to think about score or run rate, especially against a quality bowling attack. We just wanted to play it just like any other Test innings. If anything, we would have probably planned tomorrow."
“If we were in a scenario where we only lost 4–5 wickets today, then we can always plan tomorrow, and we bat quite deep as well. Going into the day-to-day, I don’t think there was any plan as to how much we need to get today or probably in the first innings as well.”
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