London: India all-rounder Washington Sundar expressed confidence in the team’s batting line-up to chase 193 on the final day of the third Test against England at Lord’s.
India finished day four at a precarious 58/4 – losing Yashasvi Jaiswal, Karun Nair and captain Shubman Gill in the final session on Sunday. With 135 required to win at the iconic venue, India’s hopes rely on overnight batter KL Rahul (33 not out) and Rishabh Pant (who will face the first ball on Monday) to lead them to victory.
Commenting on India’s position in the match, the all-rounder weighed his team ahead with Nitish Kumar Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington himself to come out to bat.
“We want so many things the way we expect it to be, but yes, we’ll take it any day. We’ll really come out positive tomorrow. We’ve got some solid batsmen in the dressing room. It’s exciting in every way, you know, winning a Test at Lord’s is going to be amazing. So, I think we’re sitting pretty,” Washington said during the post-day press conference.
“A win as a team at Lord’s would be very, very special for us. It would be amazing. I’m sure for you lot as well. It’s going to be exciting tomorrow. I mean, especially the last 15-20 minutes was quite interesting today,” he added.
Earlier in the day, Washington returned with the figures of 4-22, including important scalps of Joe Root, Jamie Smith and Ben Stokes to bundle out England for 192 in the final session of the day.
“Definitely one of the best days with the ball for me, especially outside of India. But yes, I definitely had some solid plans coming into this Test match and really wanted to execute them both in the first and second innings,” he explained.
“There are different roles thrown at me in different passages of play. I would say that’s where Test cricket gets a lot more exciting because you’ve got to be a slightly different cricketer, at least with your mindset on day five compared to day one,” the all-rounder added.
(IANS)
