Delhi Test could define Sai Sudharsan’s red-ball future as the young left-hander averages only 21 after his first four matches.
As India whizzed towards a huge victory inside three days in the opening Ahmedabad Test against West Indies, Sai Sudharsan had conflicting emotions. India’s number three wouldn’t have minded a second crack with the bat in the contest despite the Blue Brigade’s comprehensive victory at home. But as it turned out, the West Indies’ poor batting handed the Shubman Gill-led side an innings and 140 runs victory.
In Indian cricket, it’s always the problem of plenty. Other countries are sometimes forced to continue with some of their failed players. But the two-time WTC runners-up always have options to choose from. That has been the case against Sudharsan, who will go to the second Delhi Test in search of a big score.
India appear to plan their future around Sai Sudharsan
After the Test retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, India have got a young red-ball side for the next few years. The core batting group of the unit is quite new to the longest format. That will offer the management a chance to invest in Sudharsan for the future and get rewards.
In his second Test match against England at Old Trafford, the southpaw collected 61 runs. His 151-ball stay in the middle showed his resilience and fight in challenging conditions. Upon his arrival at home, he displayed superb performance against Australia A in both unofficial Tests in Lucknow.
Sudharsan grabbed 73 runs in the opening fixture, which ended in a draw. In the following contest, the Tamil Nadu batter recorded 75 runs in the first innings before celebrating a century in the second. The 100-run knock came when the Dhruv Jurel-led side completed a successful chase of 413 runs in the fourth innings. That proves his solidarity in the middle.
Moreover, being a left-handed batter, he brings the right-left equation to the line-up. In his presence, India have four southpaws in the top six, including Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant, and Ravindra Jadeja. However, his current international record doesn’t give much confidence to the management.
Read More: Has Dhruv Jurel cemented his spot as India’s second wicketkeeper-batter after Rishabh Pant?
High time for Sai Sudharsan to turn tables in Delhi Test
The biggest issue for Sai Sudharsan in the five-day format is his consistency. In four innings during the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, he got just one fifty. At Oval, the Chennai-born got a start for 38 runs but failed to convert it to a big score.
Against the West Indies in Ahmedabad, he could manage only seven runs before being dismissed leg-before by Roston Chase’s off-spin. In an innings where everyone else got starts, he and Jaiswal were the only dismissed batters not to celebrate half-centuries. The 23-year-old’s single-digit score didn’t favour him against a poor attack on a good batting surface.
When Jaiswal got out for 36 against the run of play, Sudharsan had the ideal foundation at number three to put up a big score. That could have been a game-changer in his red-ball career, which has mixed sentiments after the England trip.
But in the 25th over, he committed the blunder of going back to a delivery that was not that short. Umpire Richard Illingworth raised his finger as soon as Sudharsan missed the swipe, and the ball hit his left pad. It means that India’s number three has poor returns of 147 Test runs in seven innings so far.
In England, the youngster couldn’t put a huge score on the benign surfaces. And as the tour went on, the opponents kept challenging him with the balls on the leg side. Karun Nair was dropped from the Test squad after similar returns on the tour. In Sudharsan’s case, his age is the only positive on his side. But for how long?
Devdutt Padikkal, 25, is in the squad and awaiting his chance. He is fresh from his 150-run knock against Australia A in the first unofficial Test in Lucknow.
If the management doesn’t care about another left-handed batter in the top six, then they can head towards Rajat Patidar. The Madhya Pradesh batter has smacked three fifties and two centuries in his last seven innings during the Duleep Trophy 2025 and Irani Cup 2025.
Two days before the Delhi Test, Sudharsan was seen to get some advice from Gill regarding his batting stance. India’s assistant coach, Ryan Ten Doeschate, expressed encouraging words for the left-handed batter in the pre-match press conference.
“I am sure he does feel like he’s got our backing, like he’s got the captain’s backing and the coaching staff’s backing. And we feel he’ll deliver on his promise very soon. He just needs to focus on believing in himself. We obviously have a lot of belief in him to give him that No.3 spot. We know he is good enough, and now he has to find a way of scoring runs.” Ten Doeschate said.
On Friday, at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Sudharsan could perhaps have his last opportunity. If he doesn’t come up with a solid knock, he might not see his name during the next home series against South Africa.
Read More: Does India’s team combination have the right balance in the Ahmedabad Test?
