According to Harbhajan Singh, increasing Washington Sundar’s workload should be increased to get better result in Test cricket. In the first home series against the SENA nations (South Africa, England, New Zealand, and Australia) since R. Ashwin’s retirement, India’s spinners fell short against South Africa, while the visiting team’s spinners took 25 wickets in two Tests.
Harbhajan Singh said about Washington Sundar
When asked if India lacked a specialist right-arm spinner, Harbhajan replied, “It seems so.” Harbhajan said that Tamil Nadu all-rounder Washington still has a long way to go to establish himself as a specialist right-arm off-spinner and match Ashwin’s all-round skills.
Harbhajan, the third-highest wicket-taker among Indian spinners, said at an event here, “I think Washington is beautiful, but we need to make him bowl more. He needs to bowl 30-35 overs in a Test match before he can become a bowler.” He feels India needs to break the habit of providing turning pitches for home Test matches.
Bhajji said, “The kind of pitches we’re playing on, there’s no need to make anyone a bowler because every ball spins or straightens. A bowler can only be considered good if he takes wickets on good pitches.” Harbhajan said, “This is the right time for India to start preparing good pitches because the development of Test cricketers in the country has been hampered by playing on turning pitches at home. We should play on good pitches; this is the right time.”
He said, “It’s been over a decade of playing on pitches that have hampered the overall development of Indian cricket. If you look at it, we’re stuck in the same place, and when we play on good wickets, it’s like looking in the mirror.” Harbhajan wrote on social media after the Kolkata Test ended in three days, hashtagging “RipTestCricket.” He said, “If you want to save Test cricket, we need to start playing on good pitches that keep your bowlers, batsmen, and everyone in the game.”