Ravichandran Ashwin vs Washington Sundar spices up Team India's squad debate for ICC World Cup 2023
The case for India including an off-spinner at all generally boils down to how effective they can be against left-handers, says a CricViz analysis.
With India set to play three ODIs against Australia as final preparation for the World Cup, focus will be on the players who have thus far been left out of the 15-man squad for the tournament itself.
The hosts have until September 28 to announce any changes to their provisional Cup squad, meaning the three matches against Australia will be the final chance for those on the fringes of the main squad.
One of the selection debates will focus on the two off-spinners that India have picked for this series, Ravichandran Ashwin and Washington Sundar. Neither has been named in the provisional squad for the World Cup, but both will feature against Australia, looking to stake a claim for a role that India are sorely lacking in their 15-man squad.
The profiles of the two players are similar; off-spinners capable of adding batting depth, scoring some handy runs down the order. Both skillsets are precious commodities that India can easily find room in a squad that, while strong, looks a little unbalanced.
The opportunity for Ashwin is somewhat unexpected, given he has only played two ODIs in the last six years, but he is something of a plug-and-play option. His experience makes him lower risk – he will know the conditions, the opposition batters and his own game inside out.
Sundar is 14 years Ashwin’s junior, making him more of an unknown quantity, yet he has featured in the ODI team more regularly in recent times, having already played five matches in the format in 2023.
Another factor perhaps in Sundar’s favour is that he is left-handed. India’s top order sorely lacks a left-handed option, assuming Ishan Kishan does not feature in the starting XI, and Sundar’s point of difference could make him an attractive option alongside fellow left-handed spinning all-rounders, Axar Patel and Ravindra Jadeja.
The case for including an off-spinner at all generally boils down to how effective they can be against left-handers. With most of the other World Cup contenders likely to be fielding multiple left-handers in their top six, it’s imperative that India have an option to turn the ball away from them. Kuldeep Yadav’s left-arm wrist-spin arguably mitigates that need somewhat, but it has been long since proved that variety is crucial in successful white-ball bowling attacks.
The need to effectively bowl to left-handers in fact counts against Sundar’s inclusion as, unusually for an off-spinner, he has superior numbers against right-handers compared to left-handers. In contrast, Ashwin’s record against left-handers is elite while his numbers against right-handers are less impressive.
ODI career numbers
ODIs v right-handers v left-handers
Avg Econ rate Avg Econ rate
R Ashwin 113 39.89 5.09 25.25 4.64
W Sundar 17 27.00 4.85 27.37 5.27
Some caution is needed in this comparison given the obvious difference in sample sizes, but it is nonetheless a reminder that matchup analysis and bowler type preference is not always as straightforward as it may seem.
The thought process for the Indian selection panel essentially needs to be: do they need an off-spinner in the squad? If they do, they have to make two choices. Firstly, do they go with Ashwin – more proven and better against left-handers – or Sundar – younger but able to provide a much needed left-handed batting option in the lower middle order. Secondly, once they decide which off-spinner to go with, they would need to take a call on which player in the current 15 should be left out.
There are no correct answers in the vagaries of selection. It will be fascinating to see where the conversation is come the end of the Australia series.
