Washington Sundar feels blessed to play alongside likes of Virat Kohli, AB De Villiers

Chennai-born Washington Sundar was a revelation in last year’s IPL and looks extremely upbeat at the prospect of playing at his new franchise, the Royal Challenger’s Bangalore. The 17-year-old, who played for the now-defunct Rising Pune Supergiant in the previous edition will be donning the Bangalore outfit after being picked by the franchise for a massive sum of 3.2 crores. And Sundar thanks his lucky stars as he feels extremely blessed at the opportunity to play alongside the likes of Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers.

The teenage all-rounder grew up under the expert guidance of MS Dhoni and the leadership of Aussie skipper Steve Smith as his franchise Rising Pune Supergiant made their way to the finals. He then caught the attention of the selectors with his performances in the Tamil Nadu Premier League and subsequently earned his India debut in the three-match T20 series against Sri Lanka last year.

Speaking of his chance to rub shoulders with some iconic names of the sport, Sundar was all praise for his new captain Virat Kohli and South African AB De Villiers and stated that he is eager to learn from their immense experience.

According to Sportscafe, the off-spinner said, “I am delighted to have been picked up by RCB. I am a big fan of Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers. It will be a priceless experience to play with them after having played alongside MS Dhoni for (Rising) Pune Supergiant last year,” Washington said.

He added, “Having played with MSD in last year’s IPL and imbibed a lot of good things and now I feel it will be a blessing to be in Kohli’s team. I can learn a lot by watching them from close quarters,”

Sundar may not still be the finished product but exhibits a fearless approach

Sundar, who was the third youngest cricketer to feature in the IPL attempts at being a complete all-rounder. He is more than a bowler and bats high up the order in domestic cricket.

In his maiden appearance in the cash-rich Twenty20 league, he took 8 wickets from 11 matches. Sundar may not still be the finished product, but the youngster exhibits a fearless and audacious approach. He needs more game time under his belt to learn and prosper.

Here’s the full RCB squad