In both innings in Kolkata, Washington Sundar walked in to bat when the ball was still new and hard. That's when it zipped quicker off the surface and caused most of the batting discomfort on a pitch with uneven bounce. And both times, he looked in control of those variables. He defended low and well, left when he had to, and didn't nibble at the traps. His scores of 29 and 31 might make such praise seem hyperbolic, but this was a Test that produced only one half-centurion in Temba Bavuma.

Washington had batted just four times at that pivotal position of No.3 in first-class cricket and never at the highest level. Yet he looked a natural fit when thrown in at the Eden Gardens. By the end of the game, India's newest one-drop batter was the only one who matched the South African captain for method and composure. Washington was, in fact, the only batter across both teams to face more than 50 balls in each innings (82 and 92). He also finished with the joint-lowest false-shot percentage (12.5) with Dhruv Jurel, who faced just 48 deliveries in the entirety of the game.

But his technique was never the question. Across the 16 Tests he's played since debuting in the chaotic, unforgettable Gabba Test of 2021, Washington has repeatedly looked like someone who belongs higher up the order. Even in Gabba, he began with a steady half-century in the first innings and followed it with a crucial 22 in the tense chase. There too, much like Kolkata, the numbers didn't quite capture the weight of his contribution.

He offered more lower order impetus in his next two Tests. In Ahmedabad, he and Rishabh Pant rescued India from 146/6 with a 113-run seventh wicket stand that set up the innings victory. Washington finished four short of his maiden Test hundred there. He scored a similar backs-to-the-wall 50 in Melbourne in the Boxing Day Test last year and eventually got to that first century in a five-hour effort in Manchester a few months ago.

There are obvious question marks around continuity and giving a batter a long rope while expecting him to fulfil such an important position. But with no more Test cricket after Guwahati until the second half of next year, India could afford to kick that can a little further down the road.

India's mixing and matching in that position could also be down the transitional state they find themselves in. Rohit Sharma's exit allowed them to push KL Rahul back to opening after he briefly dabbled in the middle-order, but Virat Kohli's retirement caused a bigger shuffle.

It meant Shubman Gill dropped down to No. 4, while India tried Karun Nair and Sai Sudharsan at No.3 in England. Neither made that spot their own, and India ended up putting their eggs in the potential basket by trusting Sudharsan for the West Indies series. He scored an 87 in the first innings of the Delhi Test but Jomel Warrican and Roston Chase both poked holes at his approach against spin in the two Tests.

Washington and his batting prowess then offered India a new tactical route. Against a South African top-order with a majority of right-handed batters (Ryan Rickelton and Tony de Zorzi, the only two left-handers), India could pick two left-arm spinners without making Kuldeep Yadav a collateral damage in the name of combinations. On paper, swapping out Sudharsan for Axar Patel meant India were a batter short, but Washington's batting prowess mitigated any risk that came with it.

"When you think that against South Africa, two left arm spinners may be useful, and you also want a wrist spinner. In that process, if you go on with the second left arm spinner, then you are obviously going with one less batter. But the amount of runs Washington has scored, he is as good as any batter," India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak said. India didn't need much of Washington the batter in the West Indies Tests, but he came in clutch in England with 284 runs in eight innings at an average of 47.33.

The criticism of picking three all-rounders in a Test XI and letting T20 habits seep into the longest format also feels misplaced once you move past how it looks on paper. Washington, in the management's view and as the numbers suggest, is as good a specialist batter as they have for that role.

But all that isn't to say this is a foolproof plan for the long run. Rahul Dravid and Cheteshwar Pujara held this spot for years, and conventional wisdom would nudge India towards another batter cut from that cloth to grow into the role. Current circumstances, though, have opened up a different direction, and India aren't wrong for taking it.