IND vs SL 2017: My Hard Work Has Paid Off, Says Washington Sundar

Updated - 19 Jun 2019, 05:33 PM

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Washington Sundar, on Tuesday (December 12), revealed what he did after failing to clear the mandatory Yo Yo test in his first attempt.

The endurance test has become the parameter for the players to prove their fitness, failing of which put them out of contention for selection. Washington also suffered a similar fate after failing the test as reports suggested that he was not selected in the squad for the T20I series against Australia.

However, the setback did not dishearten him as he revealed he was determined to clear the test and is now delighted that the hard work he put in paid off. As a result of clearing the test, he received his maiden India call-up for the upcoming T20I series against Sri Lanka and even before he could finish off the celebration, he received yet another great news. The 18-year old was included in the ODI squad to replace the injured Kedar Jadhav for the ongoing series against Sri Lanka.

“I went back and prepared a lot and put in a lot of hard work. I trained and did work on few aspects that I thought I needed to improve for me to get into the Indian team. And now I think my hard work has paid off,” Washington said ahead of the second ODI against Sri Lanka in Mohali.

The 18-year old had an impressive outing in the IPL (Credits: BCCI)

“I started bowling more and spent extra time on my batting. And on fitness also, as you know it has become a very important aspect of this Indian team,” he added.

Washington has been in the limelight since impressing in this year’s Indian Premier League. He was roped in by Rising Pune Supergiant as an injury replacement for Ravichandran Ashwin and repaid the faith by taking 11 wickets in nine games at an average of 12 and an impressive economy rate of only 5.54. It was followed by an impressive debut in the Duleep Trophy where he scored a fifty and took 11 wickets. His impressive performance continued in the Tamil Nadu Premier League too as he finished the tournament as its highest run-scorer.

Washington was in fine form in domestic cricket (Credits: ESPNcricinfo)

He was also impressive in the ongoing Ranji Trophy, where he has scored 315 runs so far including the 159-run knock against Tripura which was his maiden first-class ton in addition to picking up 12 wickets.

Not surprisingly, the highly-rated allrounder has been fast-tracked into the national team at just 18. Expressing his delight over his selection, he said: “For any cricketer, playing for India is the ultimate dream right from the beginning. For me to have got this opportunity at the age of 18 is a great feeling. I’ve prepared a lot for this, I trust a lot in my preparation and it has paid off. All I have to do is now go out there and perform and win the game for my country.”

While only time will tell whether the teenager would make his debut in the upcoming game, he is well aware of what he needs to do when he gets the chance. He is also confident of batting at any position as per the team-management’s demands.

“I definitely need to be ready to bowl my 10 overs of off-spin and to contribute with the bat. No matter what position our team is in, I need to be ready to contribute no matter where I am going to [be asked to] play. I want to bat wherever my team wants me to; that is the kind of batsman I want to be talked about. I should be able to fill in the boots the management is looking for and I hope I will be able to do,” he said.