Asia Cup: Washington Sundar joins Indian Team in Colombo as cover for injured Axar Patel ahead of final

Washington Sundar, the young spin prodigy, will join the Indian Team in Colombo as the cover for injured Axar Patel ahead of the Asia Cup final on Sunday. Sundar, attending the Asian Games camp in Bengaluru, is being flown to Sri Lanka on Saturday after Axar got ruled out with niggles he suffered during the Bangladesh game.

Axar, who got two back-to-back games against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in this Asia Cup, was among the runs during the chase against the Tigers, hitting 42 off 34 balls. Though he brought his A-game while chasing, he failed to get the job done for India as they lost the tight encounter by six runs. 

Even during the innings, Axar struggled with the niggles and wrist pain, with team physio hopping onto the field to put tapping on his thigh. Though he struck two sixes and three fours, Axar found it tougher to middle the ball on most occasions because of the discomfort. The extent of his injury remains unknown as of now.

Meanwhile, following the Asia Cup 2023 final on Sunday, Sundar will rejoin the Asian Games camp in Bengaluru before flying to Hangzhou, China, for the cricket competition, which gets underway on October 1. 

The right-arm off-spinner has played some handy roles in his brief career, with the famous Gabba outing against Australia a couple of years ago being the top highlight. Sundar last featured for India in an ODI against New Zealand in January early this year but failed to make the cut in the provisional squad for the World Cup 2023.

Although India will play its first-choice XI against Sri Lanka in the all-important final, with Ravindra Jadeja, Hardik Pandya and Shardul Thakur playing as all-rounders, call on Washington Sundar’s selection will fall to the pitch on offer, given the Colombo track has assisted spinners throughout.

Sri Lanka to miss star player in final

Maheesh Theekshana, Sri Lanka’s premier spinner, will remain unavailable for selection for the big game against India in the Asia Cup final on Sunday. Theekshana, who injured his right hamstring during the Pakistan tie in the Super Four stage, is ruled out of the final as scans confirmed a muscle injury.

The Sri Lankan selectors have named Sahan Arachchige as his replacement, while Theekshana will return to the High-Performance Center to commence rehabilitation work.

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