India’s promising batting star Yashasvi Jaiswal was in the spotlight again on Day 3 of the fifth Test against England at Kennington Oval, London, and had a special moment to remember from his innings. Ex-Indian captain Rohit Sharma was seen spectating from the pavilion wearing black shades following which Jaiswal ensured that his guru had something to celebrate.
The spectators cheered wildly as Jaiswal struck boundaries. Though there were a few anxious moments as his catch was dropped three times Jaiswal made the most of every chance, going on to notch his fourth overseas Test hundred. At the end of the day’s play, the 23-year-old shared a brief but potent message he had received from Rohit Sharma: “Keep playing.”
Jaiswal, only just beginning his career away from home, has already played with some of Indian cricket’s biggest stars Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, and Shubman Gill being some of them. That experience, he says, has influenced his game and way of thinking as much as it could. With each inning, Jaiswal keeps on adapting not only as a batter but also as a professional.
“I think that’s how you need to plan your game. I need to plan my game, my innings, where my shots are and where I’m going to score runs. So, of course, I keep getting all these messages and playing with the seniors as long as I have played with Rohit Bhai, Virat Bhai. So, playing with them as well helped me a lot grow as a person and seeing them, what they have done in Test cricket, how they have prepared themselves,” he said.
“So, I think it really helped me, especially to improve as a player and especially playing with all my mates now, KL (Rahul) Bhai, the way we chat and what we think about the game, how we think about the game, Gill Bhai everyone is just, it’s very interesting and it’s like I’m really enjoying it,” he added.
Jaiswal hit his century off 127 balls, nudging a single off Gus Atkinson, and celebrated with a fervent fist pump, followed by flying kisses to the crowd where his parents were also present Jaiswal’s masterful knock finally ended on 118 off 164 balls when he tried one of his hallmark shots an upper cut off Josh Tongue. He got the timing right, but the placement let him down, and Jamie Overton took the catch at third man.
His innings had set a strong foundation, allowing India to score a dominating 396 in their second innings. His century not only gave India’s score some brawn but also marked his rise to prominence as one of the main players in India’s Test team.
