“Washington has torn the webbing in his right hand, between his thumb and first finger,” Moody said. “We must monitor that over the next two-three days. Hopefully, it isn’t a significant blow. I’d imagine it’d take probably a week or so to settle down.”
Shreyas Gopal, the legspinner, and J Suchith, the left-arm spinning allrounder, are two potential options Sunrisers can choose from. They also have Abdul Samad, one of their retentions, who can bowl some part-time leg spin. However, banking on him alone could leave a massive hole in the spin department.
Sunrisers, unlike some of the other teams that have been spin heavy, have fielded a slightly different combination so far this season. They have gone in with four pacers plus Washington as a specialist spinner, with Aiden Markram, the South African allrounder, being a handy off spinning option if required.
“We also consider Aiden Markram as a good sixth bowler, and he bowls spin well,” Moody said of their bowling plans. “Most teams we’ve played have quite a few left-handers in their top order, so it has suited us to have eight overs of offspin if we require.
“We haven’t yet seen the surface turn a huge amount, but as the tournament unfolds, we may see the conditions change slightly where spinners come into the game and then that balance of pace versus spin might change.”
Tripathi, their No. 3, fell flat on the ground clutching onto his right hamstring that needed medical attention on Monday. He left the field after having made an 11-ball 17, but by then Sunrisers were well on their way to a second straight win. Nicholas Pooran and Markram then saw them home with five balls to spare.
“He’s fine, he’s just getting cramped,” Moody said. “It’s humid conditions and we get him to run to hotspots, so he covers a lot of ground in the first two-three overs. That is something we may need to look at to make sure we get the maximum out of him with the bat because obviously, he is a very valuable player for us.”
Sunrisers have games against Kolkata Knight Riders and Punjab Kings coming up on Friday and Sunday, respectively.
Shashank Kishore is a senior sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo
Source: ESPN Crickinfo