Compulsive shadow batter Sudharsan makes strong case as India’s new number three

Manchester, Jul 23 (PTI) Sai Sudharsan was shadow batting on a covered square at Old Trafford on the eve of the fourth Test, an old habit that keeps the top-order batter mentally ready for the next opportunity that comes his way.

That daily ritual helped Sudharsan on day one as he ended up with his maiden Test fifty in testing conditions at Old Trafford.

“I do it every day. It’s my go-to thing. So, I do it whenever possible, whichever time possible, I always visualise it. It's a great, great skill which anybody can possess and mentally you'll be ready,” said the soft-spoken batter during the post-day press conference here on Wednesday.

Sudharsan did not do much wrong at his Test debut in Leeds but Karun Nair was chosen ahead of him for the following two games.

The southpaw came back to the side at Nair’s expense and this time he made the opportunity count with a dogged 61 off 151 balls.

On a slow two-paced pitch, Sudharsan played close to his body, eschewing his expansive drives.

He was quick to pull anything short offered by Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer before the same shot led to his dismissal in the final session.

An odd ball down the leg side or a bouncer was part of Stokes’ plan to distract Sudharsan who saw it coming considering his soft dismissal at Leeds.

As part of gamesmanship, the England captain even clapped when Sudharsan pulled him for a four early in his innings.

“It was actually really enjoyable experience, to be honest, because one of the best bowlers (Stokes) in the country is steaming in, trying to hit you hard and you being there and giving your best for the team, that's one of the best feelings you can have,” he said on his battle with Stokes.

“And of course, playing against England on their home soil, definitely you have to be ready for that aggressive nature. So, I enjoyed it very much.

“Definitely, I was disappointed that I got out in that shot. Probably next time I'll give my best.” Talking more about his dismissal, Sudharsan said he found batting more challenging from the pavilion end.

“I felt the dismissal, it held a bit more and bounced a bit more from the pavilion end. Actually, quite a few balls were bouncing a bit more from the pavilion end. I feel that we can see a bit more in the coming days.

“There's a bit of variable bounce and it’s a two paced wicket as well and it was overcast also. So, throughout the day there was cloud cover and the ball was moving.

“I want to negotiate that really well and I thought I played a bit tighter and took some time in the wicket,” said Sudharsan, referring to his batting approach at the start of the innings.

The 23-year-old was not able to make it big on Wednesday but he did enough to justify his selection. With age on his side, he could be the number three India have been looking for a while. PTI BS UNG