Washington Sundar - India - Batting Allrounder

Named after PD Washington as a mark of thanksgiving to his mentor by his father, Sundar has risen the ranks, from the age-group level to the Under-19 level and from Tamil Nadu to Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS). As a 18-year-old, he was one amongst a batch of cricketers who are presumed to be one of India's next generation players.

A left-handed top-order batsman who also bowls off-spin, Sundar made a rather low-key first-class debut - coming after an impressive performance for India in the Under-19 World Cup, held in Bangladesh. India eventually finished as runner-up, losing the title clash against West Indies.

IPL through the years

When he burst into the Indian Premier League in 2017, Washington Sundar, had all the qualities one would aspire from an Indian cricketer. An all-rounder who can bat anywhere in the order, can give you useful overs in the powerplay and pretty useful in the field, Sundar is a three-dimensional player, something which is an asset to any team. Having been unsold in 2017, he joined the now defunct Rising Pune Supergiant (2017) as a replacement for the injured Ravi Ashwin. By the end of the tournament, he was the toast of the town, grabbing eight wickets from 11 matches. More than the wickets, it was his ability to contain that caught the eyes of the observer.

Having been unsold in the 2017 auctions, Sundar went for a whopping 3.2 crore rupees in the 2018 players bid. The pressure of the price perhaps told on the youngster or was it the lack of opportunities? Denied a constant run in the playing XI - the effect of changing and chopping in Virat Kohli's led Royal Challengers had a telling effect - with Sundar taking a beating as far his bowling was concerned.