List of Indian batters to bat at number 3 since Cheteshwar Pujara's last Test ft. Washington Sundar

In a surprise move, the Indian team management has decided to use Washington Sundar as the number three batter in Test cricket going forward. All-rounder Sundar, who has generally batted in the lower middle-order for the Indian Test team, came out to bat after the fall of opener Yashasvi Jaiswal's wicket in the ongoing match against South Africa.

Washington Sundar is likely to receive a lot more opportunities at the number three position. Not long ago, Sai Sudharsan was considered to be the next number three batter for India in Test matches.

There was a time when India never had to think about the number three position in the Test playing XI because of Cheteshwar Pujara's presence. Pujara's excellent defense and ability to play marathon knocks ensured that the number three position was not an area of concern for India in Tests for a decade.

Nevertheless, Pujara has retired now. He played his last Test in the WTC Final 2023 against Australia, and after that game, India have already tried seven different batters in the number three position in Test cricket. Here's the full list.

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#1 Washington Sundar

The latest batter to have received an opportunity to bat at number three for India is Washington Sundar. The left-handed batter walked out to bat at number three in the ongoing Kolkata Test match against South Africa.

Sundar has aggregated 761 runs in 15 Tests of his career so far. While he has played some fantastic knocks in the lower middle-order in the past, batting at number three will be a completely different challenge for the Indian all-rounder.

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#2 Sai Sudharsan

Sai Sudharsan made his Test debut earlier this year against England. The left-handed batter played five Tests, aggregating 273 runs at a decent average of 30.33.

Sudharsan could not convert his starts into big scores in England, but he played an impressive knock of 87 runs in his last game against West Indies. Despite his half-century, Sudharsan lost his place in the playing XI.

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#3 Karun Nair

Karun Nair made his return to the Test team after eight years for the away series against England in July 2025. Nair batted at different positions, including the number three spot.

Nair returned with scores of 31, 26, 40 & 14 in the four innings he got to play at number three. After that, he did not play the fourth Test, and in the fifth Test, he was shifted down to the fifth and sixth positions.

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#4 Shubman Gill

Current Indian skipper Shubman Gill batted at number three after the team management dropped Cheteshwar Pujara from the Test squad in mid-2023. Gill played 30 innings at number three, scoring 1,019 runs at an average of 37.74.

It looked like Gill would become India's next reliable number three batter. However, once Gill became the team's captain, he shifted himself down to the number four position.

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#5 KL Rahul

For the Melbourne Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024/25 series, KL Rahul replaced Shubman Gill in the number three position. The then Indian batting coach Abhishek Nayar explained that the management left Gill out of the team because they wanted an extra spin option.

Washington Sundar took Gill's place in the team, while Rahul moved to the number three position. However, Rahul's performance was not that good. He returned with scores of 24 & 0. After that, Rahul has played as a specialist opener for India in Test cricket, replacing Rohit Sharma at the top.

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#6 Devdutt Padikkal

In the same Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, Shubman Gill was unavailable for the first Test due to injury. As a result, India gave an opportunity to Devdutt Padikkal to showcase his talent at the number three position.

However, Padikkal failed to grab the golden chance. He returned with disappointing scores of 0 & 25 in Perth. After that game in November 2024, Padikkal is yet to play a Test for India again.

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#7 Virat Kohli

Shubman Gill missed India's first Test against New Zealand in 2024 due to neck stiffness. This injury forced the team management to try Virat Kohli at the number three position.

Kohli got out for a duck in the first innings but followed it up with a half-century in the second innings. Despite his 102-ball 70 in the second innings, Kohli was moved back to the number four spot once Gill returned.

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Edited by Vinay Chhabria