Indian off-spinner Washington Sundar shared how senior teammate Ravichandran Ashwin’s guidance after claiming a career-best 7-59 on Day 1 of the second Test against New Zealand in Pune on Thursday, October 24 as well. However, Sundar also shared that as the ball became soft, Ashwin advised him to put more speed and body into his deliveries as well.

Acknowledging R Ashwin’s contribution, he said (as quoted by PTI), “The ball became very soft. So, we had to sort of give more speed and more body into the ball, that was something me and Ash (Ashwin) kept talking about. Ashwin said he did that himself in the spell after lunch, that’s how he got (Devon) Conway out. We spoke about it and (I’m) glad I was able to do it. It’s quite rare but he is very kind, especially in that perspective. Not just me, but no matter who goes and asks him for ideas about bowling or any technicalities, he’s always there to help everyone.”

However, Washington Sundar made his Test debut against Australia in the Brisbane Test in January 2021, making important contributions with both bat and ball. With the ongoing Test against New Zealand, he returned to the format which is only his fifth in the red-ball format for India.

“We communicated a lot and they brought in a lot of qualities, skill sets and experience. That really helps for someone who is playing along with them. It definitely helped me today and it is special to be playing in the game in which both of them are part of as well. I hope we will get to play a lot more games together,” Washington Sundar concluded.