Team India all-rounder Washington Sundar backed Rishabh Pant and Dhruv Jurel over poor strokes that led to their dismissals on Day 3 of the Guwahati Test against South Africa. Sundar said that Pant has tasted success with the same approach in the past and added that the management backs him completely. India had another poor day in the office on Day 3 of the second Test against South Africa at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati on Monday, November 24. Resuming their second innings at 9-0, the hosts were all-out for 201 in 83. 5 overs. Pant was dismissed for seven as he skipped down the track to Marco Jansen, but only managed to nick the ball to the keeper, while Jurel (0) mistimed a pull. The Indian captain came in for heavy criticism from fans and experts following his ugly dismissal. Sundar, however, threw his weight behind the batters. Speaking at a press conference after the end of Day 3 in Guwahati, he said: “On another day, both the balls would have gone into the stands and all of us would have appreciated and clapped. That’s how it is. Sometimes, you’ve just got to back their plans and their skill sets as well, given the fact that they have shown lot of evidences in the past as well. Obviously, the execution didn’t go the way we wanted.” Asked for an assessment of India’s batting failure on Day 3 of the Test against South Africa, Sundar replied that it is up to the individuals to take a call on how to play. The all-rounder elaborated: “There’s quite a few ways you can play the game and I think it’s up to the individuals as to what their plans are, especially on this wicket. We just back our plans and at times it doesn’t go the way we wanted to.” India got off to a decent start on Day 3 of the Guwahati Test and were 95-1 at one stage. However, they kept losing wickets to concede a huge first-innings lead. “It wasn’t a snake pit” Washington Sundar on Guwahati wicket for 2nd IND vs SA 2025 Test While India’s bowlers struggled to make an impact against South Africa in the first innings, the Proteas were a lot more effective. Left-arm pacer Jansen made the ball talk, claiming 6-48 from 19. 5 overs. Sundar admitted that the pitch remained a good one to bat on Day 3 as well. The 26-year-old said: “It wasn’t a snake pit or whatever you may call it. I mean, it’s a very good wicket. It’s a true wicket. Not many days you’ll get to bat on such tracks, especially in India. If you spend time there, runs are for the taking. You can’t really contain runs for a very long period of time.” Sundar, who batted at No. 3 in the previous Test, came in at No. 8 on Monday. He contributed a defiant 48 off 92 balls, while Yashasvi Jaiswal top-scored with 58. At stumps on Day 2, South Africa were 26-0 in their second innings, having taken all overall lead of 314 runs.
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