Washington Sundar Tests Positive for Coronavirus, In Doubt for South Africa ODIs

Washington Sundar’s participation in the ODI series against South Africa has come under doubt. According to several reports, Sundar has tested positive for the coronavirus. The Tamil Nadu all-rounder tested positive last week when he was training with the ODI players at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru. It is believed that Washington Sundar has completed his one-week isolated quarantine. The other players at the NCA have tested negative and will fly to South Africa shortly. But, with Sundar still in isolation, it remains to be seen whether he can compete in the series against South Africa.

Sundar has made a good impact when he has been selected for the Indian cricket team. The three-match ODI series will begin on January 19 and will end on January 23. The first two ODIs will be played at Boland Park in Paarl while the final ODI will be played in Cape Town. India’s last limited-overs series in South Africa was in 2018 and they thrashed the Proteas 5-1 in the ODIs. They also won the T20I series 2-1.

Bad luck for Washington Sundar continues

Washington Sundar has been one of the finds of Indian cricket in the last year. He made his debut in the Brisbane Test against Australia and smashed a vital 62. The offspinner also took the wicket of Steve Smith cheaply. In the two Tests against England, Washington Sundar smashed 85* and 96* in Chennai and Ahmedabad. Sundar then played the T20I against England but he suffered an injury.

Read – Rohit Sharma ruled out of the South Africa tour, KL Rahul to lead

Even when the IPL 2021 resumed in UAE, Sundar suffered an injury that ruled him out of the tournament. In the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy for Tamil Nadu, Sundar performed well with the bat and the ball. He hit 148 runs and took 16 wickets. This included one knock of 70 against Saurashtra in Jaipur. Prior to that, he took 5/48 against Puducherry. Tamil Nadu entered the final where they lost to Himachal Pradesh despite Dinesh Karthik’s century.

The India ODI team includes some fresh faces in the series against South Africa. Rohit Sharma has been ruled out due to injury. Jasprit Bumrah is the vice-captain with KL Rahul the captain. Venkatesh Iyer and Ruturaj Gaikwad, two stars of the IPL are also in the squad, with Gaikwad slated to make his debut. R Ashwin also returns to the ODI set-up after five years. There is doubt as to whether Mohammed Siraj will play after he was ruled out of the Cape Town Test due to a hamstring injury.

India’s 18-member squad for ODI series vs South Africa

KL Rahul (captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Venkatesh Iyer, Rishabh Pant, Ishan Kishan, R Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Prasidh Krishna, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Siraj