Tamil Nadu batter Sai Sudharsan recently made the cut for the Indian national team as he was among the 18 candidates who will take on England in June.
India will play a five-match Test series against England in the upcoming month starting from June 20, which will see the birth of a new World Test Championship (WTC) cycle, the final of which is scheduled to be played in 2027.
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Among a lot of new and old faces, Sudharsan got his maiden call-up in the red-ball format after an illustrious Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025.
The batter has bagged 679 runs in 14 matches so far, at a healthy average of 52.23. Many believe that his exploits in the 18th edition have rightly earned him the place in the Test team.
Fans and experts have closely followed the left-handed batter this season and have been left impressed by the Gujarat Titans (GT) batter's technique. Sudharsan is known for his low-risk shots, which have proved to be immense in the shortest format of the game, defying all odds.
However, his ex-coach has different opinions regarding the Indian batter's probable performance in the upcoming series.
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What did Sudharsan's ex-coach say?
Former Tamil Nadu coach Sulakshan Kulkarni has predicted Sudharsan to fail in the upcoming Test series against England.
Kulkarni, who has worked closely with the southpaw during his time in the Tamil Nadu camp in the 2023/24 season, pointed out a major flaw in the GT batter's technique and questioned his domestic record, which hasn't been that great.
Speaking to the Times of India, Kulkarni said, "His domestic record is not great. When I was the coach, I saw him play on a seaming track in at least two matches. And he didn’t play well there. His technique against the moving ball needs to improve."
Kulkarni further stressed that the batter has a tendency to play away from the body, while the way to succeed in England is by playing the ball late and right under one's nose.
"He has a tendency of playing away from the body while the secret of success in England is to play late and play the ball right under your nose. He has to curb some of his strokes and should play straight and close to the body. He has to work to get the technique right before the tour."
Sai Sudharsan has featured in the County twice, as he played for Sussex in the 2023 and 2024 seasons respectively, averaging around 35. He brought up his maiden First-Class ton on English soil in his last outing for the side. In his 29 First-Class outings, he amasses a total of 1957 runs at an average of 39.93.
It'll be interesting to see if the southpaw can make the most of his chances and prove his doubters wrong in the highly anticipated England tour.