3 similarities between Yashasvi Jaiswal and Virender Sehwag
Emerging Indian opening batter, Yashasvi Jaiswal, scripted history with his scintillating double hundred against England in the second Test in Vishakapatnam. The left-handed batter scored 209 runs off 290 deliveries, which included 19 fours and seven sixes.
He became the third youngest Indian player to record a double hundred after Sunil Gavaskar and Vinod Kambli, and his marathon innings also broke several other records in the process.
Jaiswal's efforts helped India post 396 in the first innings, and it is a testament to his ability that the second highest run scorer for Team India was Shubman Gill with 34 runs to his name.
Ending up with a strike rate of over 70, and playing close to 50 overs singlehandedly, Jaiswal elicited comparisons from fans and pundits to legendary Indian opener, Virender Sehwag, and with good reason as well.
The youngster has never shied away from his natural aggressive game, which was evident in the domestic circuit. He recently scored a quickfire knock on a tough surface during the run chase against South Africa in the second Test against Newlands, and the same approach was seen in his fifty against England in Hyderabad as well.
On that note, let us take a look at three similarities between Yashasvi Jaiswal and Virender Sehwag.
#1 Ruthless aggression
Virender Sehwag's lasting impact has been made through the sheer aggression he showed with the bat in his playing days. The opening batter's style of play was deemed unorthodox before, but it was arguably ahead of its time, as nowadays players are urged to play in such a manner, if possible.
As a result, Yashasvi Jaiswal is the closest thing that Team India have in terms of a long-term aggressive opener across formats. His ruthless approach at the start of the innings helps India maximize the powerplay in the limited-over formats while it provides a benefit in the red-ball game as well.
Another excellent trait of Sehwag's that Jaiswal seems to have picked up is the ability to score big hundreds, always converting their scores and making it count to the highest degree. A century is never a sign of completion, it is just a milestone, and Jaiswal seems to have worn it on his sleeve, as both of his hundreds so far have been huge ones.
He scored a mammoth 171 in his maiden innings, and the second time he reached the three-figure mark, he made sure to convert it into his first ever double hundred. Sehwag was also renowned for his mammoth scores, in the form of double and triple hundreds in Tests, and although these are early days, it would be a huge feat if the emerging player maintains the habit of scoring big hundreds whenever it is his day.
#2 Very strong square of the wicket
Sehwag was able to cement his place at the top of the Indian batting unit becuase of the impact he provided across both home and away conditions. His overall statistics, especially the strike rate, do not differ too much despite the stark difference in conditions between the subcontinent and the rest of the world.
Sehwag's ability to play the cut and the pull shot and cope with the bounce played a huge part in his success, beginning with a ton in South Africa. Despite Jaiswal's recent failures in the Rainbow Nation, he has shown that he is an excellent exponent of the cut and pull strokes and as a result, he could be a valuable asset in overseas conditions going forward.
Although the youngster does not entirely rely on hand-eye coordination like Sehwag largely did, there are times when it comes to play apart from footwork-based shots.
#3 Penchant for reaching milestones in style
A trivial similarity between the two players is seen through the manner with which they approach milestones. Most batters are confined to a shell and fear for their wicket when they near a major milestone, but Sehwag and Jaiswal are cut different from the rest, but are from the same cloth.
Sehwag famously reached a majority of his milestones, including his maiden triple hundred with a maximum, and the same trait was observed when Jaiswal reached his ton and double ton with a boundary as well.
One can only hope Jaiswal gets to more milestone figures to make the trait somewhat of a trademark, much like Sehwag had did after a point in time.
Will the youngster go onto have a prolific career like Virender Sehwag had in his time? Let us know what you think.