India may have finally found some calm in a spot that’s seen more churn than stability lately.
B Sai Sudharsan’s composed half-century at No. 3 in the ongoing fourth Test at Old Trafford marked a rare moment of steadiness in a role that has seen seven changes since the start of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. It’s the first time in nine Tests that an Indian No. 3 has reached fifty.
Since late last year, India have tried Devdutt Padikkal, Shubman Gill, KL Rahul, Karun Nair and now Sudharsan in the position. Some came in due to injuries. Others were tactical switches. Few had time to settle.
This time, Sudharsan wasn’t even a guaranteed pick the day before the match. Signs at the nets suggested both he and Nair might play. Catching drills. Visualization sessions on damp covers. It wasn’t clear until the morning.
Conditions were tricky. Overcast skies pointed to seam. A cracked pitch hinted at spin. India chose to cover both. Nair sat out. Sudharsan returned to No. 3.
It wasn’t a textbook case for Test selection. He averages under 40 in first-class cricket, and India haven’t handed out such debuts to specialist batters since WV Raman in 1988. Usually, the benchmark sits closer to 60.
Yet those who’ve followed Sudharsan’s rise weren’t surprised.
R Ashwin once bowled to him in club cricket when Sudharsan was just 17. The youngster didn’t play a single ball against the spin until Ashwin overpitched. That impression stuck. Ashwin later lost a bidding war for him in the Tamil Nadu Premier League. Ashish Nehra backed him in the IPL. And national selectors ignored the numbers and picked the player.
They saw someone who competes. Someone who finds a way.
Against England, he did just that.
It wasn’t flashy. And not always fluent. But Sudharsan handled pace, bounce, and Ben Stokes. He battled uneven movement. He took hits. He rode his luck once when Jamie Smith dropped a leg-side chance. And he answered pressure.
“I would’ve walked off,” he said, bluntly, when asked what might’ve happened had Smith held the catch.
His duel with Stokes was personal. The England captain clapped back when Sudharsan pulled him for four. There was noise. Eye contact. Maybe even some needle. “It was actually a really enjoyable experience,” Sudharsan said. “The best bowler in the country is trying to hit you, and you’re just giving your best.”
The innings included two crisp pulls, a back-foot punch, and smooth drives through cover. Between those were scratchy moments. Loose edges. Stiff forward presses. But that’s the nature of Test cricket. You stay in. You give yourself a chance.
His fifty came at a time when India needed resilience. They had just lost another wicket around a break. Rishabh Pant had exited earlier with a suspected foot fracture. England were beginning to exploit the pitch better after lunch. The moment could have spiraled.
Instead, Sudharsan steadied things. Wickets fell at the other end, but he held on. That’s what India have long wanted from their No. 3.
It’s early. There will be days when he’s more fluid. Others when things don’t click. But for now, Sudharsan has done enough to keep the shirt. He’s shown the traits that don’t always reflect in scorecards: presence, purpose, and the ability to adapt.
And after months of experimentation, that might just be what India needed.
