"Washington Sundar should have played in the third ODI" - Ex-India seamer's big claim on India's combination for IND vs SA 2025 3rd ODI

Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan has made a massive claim on the Men in Blue's combination for the third ODI against South Africa in Vizag. Pathan believes India should have stuck to Washington Sundar for the final game as well to maintain the consistency in selection throughout the series.

With Sundar not having much of an impact with bat or ball in the first two ODIs, India replaced him with Tilak Varma in the line-up. Tilak, who was likely to bat at No. 5, did not get an opportunity, given that the hosts needed only three batters to chase down 271. However, his off-spin leaked 29 runs from his three overs.

Speaking in a recent video on his YouTube channel 'Irfan Pathan,' the 41-year-old reflected on India's takeaways from the 2-1 series win, claiming that India's bowlers performed well without Jasprit Bumrah. He cited Prasidh Krishna's example by stressing that players must be backed to the fullest before judging them.

"The way the fast bowlers have bowled in Jasprit Bumrah’s absence, whether it be Harshit Rana and Arshdeep Singh. The way Prasidh Krishna came back, he justified his selection. I had spoken in the previous video and people were not happy about it. Bowlers will go for runs but is there any rationale in backing him and we will talk about it if there’s none. If there is a rationale, they should be backed," Pathan said.

"Washington Sundar should have played in the third ODI. If Tilak Varma was playing from the first match, he should have got all three matches. When Ruturaj Gaikwad failed in the first match, I had said even then he deserves a go in all three games. Only then you can judge," he added.

Krishna, the right-arm pacer, was expensive in the first two matches without many wickets to show. Nevertheless, the Karnataka-born cricketer bowled a game-changing spell in the series-decider in Vizag and finished with figures of 9.5-0-66-4 to restrict the Proteas to 270.

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"India are carrying plenty of positives with the way the series progressed" - Irfan Pathan

KL Rahul and co. celebrate a wicket. (Image Credits: BCCI X)

In the same video, Pathan lavished praise on KL Rahul's captaincy, claiming that his versatility and experience came to the fore when India were in need. Underlining the importance of the toss, the former player elaborated:

"India are carrying plenty of positives with the way the series progressed. India won the toss after two years in ODIs and it showed how much difference there is between the two teams. KL Rahul’s left hand worked. KL Rahul is a versatile player. It is not easy to run a bowling unit without Jasprit Bumrah, neither it is with dew."

He added:

"His experience as a keeper, captain and senior player was there. When Quinton de Kock was batting, the mid-off was out and the ball went on to that region on certain occasions. If mid-off was up, plenty of boundaries would have been scored. It was good to see his captaincy and the way he rotated the bowlers."

Pathan continued:

"In the first match, he played a bit too cautiously but made a half-century with a good strike rate. But he played a different role in the second game. He hit a six and four initially to show how important he is to the team. Because when there is a role change and the ball gets old, there is a need for a batter with compact technique and that is KL Rahul. His role will be crucial as the World Cup draws closer."

The Asian Giants registered their third consecutive ODI series victory over South Africa.