Why Washington Sundar's RCB Move Is His Best Opportunity Yet

It is that time of the cricketing calendar again when the world is engrossed in a two-month long cricket carnival. It is time for the IPL, now in its eleventh season.

This T20 bonanza has given the game some of the world’s greatest players in the modern game, also with it have numerous youngsters burst on to the scene.

One of IPL’s gift to Indian cricket came last year - 18-year old all-rounder Washington Sundar. After a very promising breakout season with the now dissolved Rising Pune Supergiant, Sundar has risen to new heights over the past twelve months and will now don the colours of the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the upcoming season after he was picked up for Rs. 3.2 Crores.

This move now presents Sundar with his best opportunity yet to prove his mettle as a limited overs all-rounder.

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Sundar has racked up impressive numbers

Washington Sundar played for Rising Pune Supergiant in the 2017 Indian Premier League

Playing 11 matches last season, Sundar bowled 60% off his overs in the mandatory powerplay. While he did not pick up many wickets, it was his accuracy and choking ability that impressed everyone.

In this 18 powerplay overs, the Tamil Nadu off-spinner bowled 56 dot balls, at a dot-ball percentage of 51.85%.

His overall powerplay figures read 18-0-118-4, at an economy rate of 6.56 runs per over. For a 17-year old cricketer, these are some wonderful numbers.

Building on the IPL season, Sundar showed his mettle with the bat in the Ranji Trophy where he scored 315 runs in six matches at an average of 39.37 with a hundred and a half-century. For his hundred, he opened the batting against Tripura and scored 159.

His finest domestic performance yet came in the Duleep Trophy Final when while playing for India Red, he put in a Man-Of-The-Match show against India Blue, which consisted of players like Suresh Raina, Deepak Hooda, Manoj Tiwary and Ishant Sharma.

He made 88 off 118 balls in the first innings before picking up 5/94 with the ball. In the second essay, he made a fighting 42 off 135 balls and took 6/87 as India Red won by 163 runs.

On the back of these performances, Sundar broke into the Indian T20 setup. In the recently concluded Nidahas Trophy, a T20 Tri-Series including Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, the wily off-spinner was adjudged Man Of The Series for his brilliant performances with the ball.

In the five games, Sundar took eight wickets at an average of 14.25 and an economy rate of 5.70 and was instrumental in India winning the trophy.

The standout factor in these performances was again Sundar’s ability to bowl the tough powerplay overs. Bowling 65% off his overs in the powerplay, he produced tournament powerplay figures of 13-0-67-6, a dot-ball-percentage of 53.85% and an economy rate of 5.15.

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WHY is RCB his best opportunity yet?

Washington Sundar celebrates a wicket with Dinesh Karthik in the Nidahas Trophy

Why is this Washington Sundar’s best opportunity yet? He gets to play his home games on Bangalore pitches which are batting belters.

His teammate Yuzvendra Chahal has excelled on that wicket and has become India’s lead limited-overs spinner. This should be enough motivation for Sundar to do well this year.

Chahal, like Sundar, bowls inside the powerplay frequently and is one of the very few bowlers to be successful at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

If Sundar can replicate his performances from IPL 2017 and the Nidahas Trophy, the RCB have a great chance of winning the elusive trophy, for its greatest weakness has been in containing the opposition, in spite of boasting a near perfect batting lineup every season.

Washington Sundar has quickly risen through the ranks and finds himself in the spotlight ahead of what promises to be an exhilarating IPL 2018.

While Sundar is very young, he has shown a tremendous stomach to perform in difficult situations, something which excites RCB a lot. This move to RCB is Washington Sundar’s best opportunity yet.