India captain Rohit Sharma has reiterated his faith in Yashaswi Jaiswal’s potential to become one of the leading batsmen for the team across all formats. Rohit has consistently praised Yashaswi’s seamless transition from domestic and senior cricket to the international stage and once again found an opportunity to praise his young partner at the start.
Speaking to the press on the eve of the first Test between India and New Zealand in Bengaluru, Rohit Sharma expressed that he was not surprised by Yashaswi Jaiswal’s success in the early stages of his international career. The captain emphasized that Yashasvi’s hunger to continue to improve his game is setting him up for future greatness.
“I’m not surprised at all because the guy has real talent. He has the game to succeed in any conditions. He is still new to international cricket so it is difficult to judge at the moment but he has all the ingredients to succeed at this level. It’s just about how he does in the next few years, he has already shown that you can bet on him to do wonders for the team,” Rohit said.
Yashasvi Jaiswal recently became the second fastest Indian to score 1,000 Test runs, reaching the milestone during a Test series against England earlier this year. He needed just 16 innings to achieve this, two innings slower than former India player Vinod Kambli.
Yashasvi has so far scored 1217 runs at an impressive average of 64.05 in 11 Tests. At 22, he has also played 23 T20Is, amassing 723 runs at an average of 36.15 per innings, with a hundred and five fifties in the shortest format.
“HE HAS COME THROUGH THE TRENCHES”
Yashaswi showed his class during the home series against England earlier this year, breaking Sunil Gavaskar’s record for most runs in a bilateral series for India, scoring 712 runs in five Tests.
“He came through the ranks, played a lot of national cricket and under-19 cricket and succeeded at every level. That’s why he plays for India now. So far he has shown what he is capable of and that is a good sign for Being a left-hander and an aggressive batsman is great for the team and I hope he continues to perform like this,” added Rohit.
“He is a guy who is eager to learn the game and master his batting, and that is always a positive sign. When a young person joins the team, their mindset is crucial. Yashasvi has shown a great attitude – he is always looking to improve, he is never satisfied with what he has achieved so far, we have found a great player in him to continue to do what he has done in the past year,” said Rohit.
Rohit and Yashasvi have already formed a successful opening combination for India in Tests, scoring 1082 runs together in 20 innings. The young opener will look to build on his good form during the home Tests against New Zealand and head into his first tour of Australia brimming with confidence.
India are scheduled to play three Tests against New Zealand from October 16 to November 5, followed by a five-match series in Australia from November 22 to January 7.
