Washington Sundar has been my inspiration since I was young: Sai Sudharsan

India’s latest young batting sensation, Sai Sudharsan, who has been part of India’s red-ball squad for the England tour for the five-match Test series, has disclosed that his Chennai teammate, Washington Sundar, has been an inspiration since his starting days.

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Notably, India is scheduled to take on England in the five-match Test series, starting on June 20 at Headingley, Leeds. This series will be a part of the new World Test Championship cycle. In a heartfelt conversation shared by the BCCI, Sudharsan spoke highly of Sundar.

"He has been my inspiration since I was young. I have played a few games against him, so it is always special. To be honest, we have looked up to him a lot. I have practised once or twice (against Sundar), the way he went up and the way he played for the country, it was really quick, so I had that in my mind. He did well in the IPL, and then he played for the country. So it was a great motivator for me from Chennai. Knowing him since I was young, playing with him, it is kind of inspiring. It made me feel I want to do things the same way," Sudharsan told BCCI.tv.

Sundar, who is also aiming to make it to the playing XI with competition from Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav, has stated that he is proud of Sudharsan’s development and asserted that the top-order batter has inspired a lot of kids in the city

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"I have watched him on TV. There is a lot to take away from him, his skillset and work ethic he has got. He has inspired a lot of kids in Chennai, and I hope he will continue inspiring kids all over the world," Sundar said.

India's Test squad for the England series: Shubman Gill (c), Rishabh Pant (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Nitish Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav.

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