Axar Patel was dropped for Washington Sundar.
India made a weird decision to play Washington Sundar ahead of Axar Patel in the T20 World Cup 2026 clash against South Africa. Axar was rested in the previous game against Netherlands, with Sundar getting a look in, but he was expected to return.
Instead, India persisted with Sundar, which was not an ideal move, even if there was matchup merit. The idea was probably to target three LHBs with an off-spinner, but his usage suggested something else.
India started with two pacers, which proved to be the right decision, but still showed that the plan wasn’t specifically to bring an off-spinner against LHBs straight away against the likes of Quinton de Kock and Ryan Rickelton. Instead, Sundar wasn’t used in the powerplay at all, with Varun Chakravarthy introduced in the fifth over when David Miller and Dewald Brevis were batting.
He had bowled only two overs in the powerplay before in the tournament and was put under pressure immediately, conceding 11 runs; Sundar came to bowl in the seventh over but was taken for 11 runs, with Brevis and Miller hitting a boundary each. Once two of the three LHBs departed early, India’s plans were disturbed altogether because the spinner is very limited against RHBs, and they had to hide him by bowling two sets of Shivam Dube, who dismissed Brevis but leaked 16 runs per over.
Axar Patel might sound like a negative matchup, but he has improved massively against southpaws. He has an economy rate of 6.35 and conceded only two boundaries in 17 balls against LHBs this year.
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Even in general, Axar has been among the most accurate spinners in T20s, with the ability to bowl straighter lines without going into the slot. So, he is not limited to just holding RHBs, offering more dynamics and flexibility as a bowler, and would have bowled ahead of Varun in the powerplay.
Even as a batter, Axar Patel could have been utilised more than Washington Sundar because he can whack spin and brings decent skills against pace. South Africa have Aiden Markram and Keshav Maharaj in the spin department, and Axar could have taken them down by batting slightly up in the order.
Sundar, at best, can hit fast bowlers and can’t be promoted up the order since that would further exacerbate India’s issues against spinners. Surely, India missed a trick by not employing Axar when he gave more options in every department.
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