Riyan Parag in T20 World Cup frame, but India's lineup leaves little room for error

Riyan Parag for India [Source: X]

Luck has strange ways of finding the one it wants to favour, and Riyan Parag find himself amongst one. The Assam cricketer got a call-up by the Board of Control for Cricket in India in the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru ahead of the T20 World Cup for a series of fitness tests.

The main motive of the call-up, though, was to make Riyan Parag play warm-up matches ahead of the T20 World Cup 2026 to prepare him for an all-rounder vacancy.

The vacancy was created by Washington Sundar, who met with an ill fate to get injured while bowling during the first ODI against New Zealand. His lower rib stress got him ruled out of the ODI series and the T20I series as well. With not much time left for the mega ICC event, it seems like Parag was the most ‘close-enough’ choice for Sundar.

Riyan Parag sub-par with recent form

Riyan Parag’s recent form has not been up to the mark. His most recent outing came in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in December 2025, where he played six matches but managed only 53 runs across all innings, averaging 8.83 with a poor strike rate of 74.65.

Before that, Parag featured in the South Africa A ODI series, where he again struggled, scoring just 25 runs at an average of 12.50.

His IPL form, however, was quite impressive, as he scored 393 runs from 14 matches at an average of 32.75 and a healthy strike rate of 166.53. 

That said, those performances came eight months ago, and his recent T20 returns in the SMAT Elite 2025 give him little to be satisfied about. Yes, Parag’s recent stats are underwhelming, but how are they against Washington Sundar’s?

Riyan Parag vs Washington Sundar comparison in T20Is

There is a clear difference in the skill sets of Washington Sundar and Riyan Parag. To begin with, Washington Sundar is a bowling all-rounder, while Riyan Parag is primarily a batter who occasionally contributes with part-time off-break and leg-break bowling.

[Riyan Parag vs Washington Sundar batting stats in T20Is]

In addition, Riyan Parag has far fewer T20I appearances compared to Washington Sundar. Sundar has played 58 T20Is in his career, picking up 51 wickets and scoring 254 runs at an average of 16.93.

[Riyan Parag vs Washington Sundar bowling stats in T20Is]

Parag, on the other hand, has taken four T20I wickets from nine appearances and scored 106 runs at an average of 17.66, while striking slightly better than Sundar at 151.42.

Impact created on batting position

In terms of batting position, Washington Sundar usually bats at number seven or eight, where he has had a moderate impact with the bat, scoring 72 and 59 runs respectively, while averaging 10.29 and 19.67. Riyan Parag, meanwhile, has batted at number four in his T20I games and also at number seven, where he has been more impactful than Sundar.

However, given the limited sample size of his T20I numbers, much of Parag’s experience comes from the Indian Premier League. In the IPL, he has mostly batted at number four and number six. At number six, he boasts a strike rate of 127.68 and an average of 17.30.

Purely on the basis of numbers, Riyan Parag appears to be a stronger batter than Washington Sundar and reasonably comparable in terms of bowling contribution. However, the key question remains whether Parag can make a meaningful impact if he is slotted into the playing XI in place of Washington Sundar.

Conclusion: Parag’s impact on the Playing XI

With the playing XI dynamics in mind, it is fairly clear that Riyan Parag will find it difficult to break into the final XI, even if he earns a spot in India’s T20 World Cup 2026 squad.

If he is considered a like-for-like replacement for Washington Sundar, Parag can only make a strong case in the event of an injury to Shivam Dube, allowing him to slot into the middle order around No. 5 to No. 7, while also offering secondary bowling options.

Other than Shivam Dube, there is only a slim possibility of Parag replacing Axar Patel as an all-rounder if the team management feels they can rely on Hardik Pandya and part-time spin, with Axar Patel sidelined due to any unforeseen circumstances.

This scenario would push India towards a batting-heavy XI, adding extra depth with Parag’s explosiveness. Parag is flexible at No. 4 or No. 6 and can comfortably bat anywhere in the middle order.

That said, if Washington Sundar were available, India would likely opt for a bowling-heavy XI instead of a batting-focused one, as Sundar offers significantly more impact with the ball.

Parag’s inclusion, however, tilts the balance towards a batting-heavy XI, where the presence of Varun Chakaravarthy and Kuldeep Yadav could help address any bowling imbalances.