Washington Sundar

Washington Sundar player profile

Like R Ashwin from Tamil Nadu before him, Washington Sundar went from being a batsman as a youngster to making his name as an offspinner. After representing India at the 2016 Under-19 World Cup, he replaced Ashwin at Rising Pune Supergiant in the 2017 IPL, and bowled at an impressive economy rate to help his side to the final.

Sundar's father, a cricketer who made it to the Tamil Nadu Ranji probables without getting into the final squad, named him Washington to honour his godfather, Mr Washington, who would buy bats for him and pay his fees. Sundar loved to bowl but only in matches because he found it boring to just field. He eventually started to take it seriously under the eye of former India offspiner M Venkataramana. Sundar bowls with great discipline, and held his own in domestic one-day competitions and after making his Twenty20 debut as a 17-year-old in the IPL. 

Washington Sundar IPL factfile

- An injury to fellow Tamil Nadu offspinning allrounder R Ashwin saw Washington Sundar signed as a replacement for Rising Pune Supergiant in IPL 2017 as he made his T20 debut at the age of 17.

- He took eight wickets in 11 games in his debut season and registered a miserly economy of 6.16 to help his team reach the final.

- He was then signed by Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), where he spent the next four seasons, making 31 appearances.

- His best season was IPL 2020, when he took eight wickets in 15 games and conceded at less than six runs an over.

- He spent the next three years with Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) where he made 18 appearances, before being purchased by Gujarat Titans (GT) for INR 3.2 crore in the IPL 2025 mega auction.