“Trying to make it big whenever I’m set” – Yashasvi Jaiswal shares success mantra behind consecutive Test double centuries against England
India opener Yashasvi Jaiswal shared the mantra behind his second double-century in the ongoing five-match Test series against England.
The left-handed batter said that he is trying to score big whenever he gets set, as advised by his seniors after he threw away his wicket for 80 in the opening Test in Hyderabad.
In the second Test in Visakhapatnam, Jaiswal scored 209 runs off 290 deliveries in the first innings, helping India reach a total of 396. They eventually won the match by 106 runs.
After his double-century in the third Test, the 22-year-old pointed out that it was challenging to play aggressive shots at the start of his knock, but scoring became easier as the innings progressed.
Jaiswal scored an unbeaten 214 off 236 balls, with the help of 12 sixes and 14 boundaries in the second innings of the third Test in Rajkot. His innings helped India declare at 430/4 in the second innings to set a mammoth 557-run target for the visitors before the hosts won by 434 runs to take a 2-1 lead in the five-match series.
The youngster batted twice after getting retired hurt due to a back spasm on the score of 104 on Day 3. He resumed the innings after Shubman Gill’s wicket on Day 4.
Jaiswal said in the post-match show:
“I’m just trying to make it big whenever I’m set. In Test cricket you never know, I try to make sure I play as long as I can when I’m set. It was pretty difficult, initially, I was not getting runs so, I had to play the session and play the bowler. Then when I got set, I could score the runs."
He continued:
“I had my plans about where I could play my shots and get runs. After some time, my back was not good. I didn’t want to go out, but I had to go out because it was too much. When I came back, I tried to give myself time and take it as deep as I can. I knew that if I was there, I would take the game forward and be there till the end.”
“Important for me to give the team a very good start” – Yashasvi Jaiswal
Yashasvi Jaiswal further said that he wanted to ensure India got off to a good start after he departed cheaply (10 off 10) in the first innings. He pointed out that watching Indian captain Rohit Sharma (131 off 196) and Ravindra Jadeja (112 off 225) stitch a 204-run partnership and play session by session inspired him to deliver in the second innings. He said:
"I knew it was important for me to give the team a very good start, as we have seen it has a huge impact on the team. I feel like whenever I am set I need to make it big. As all my seniors have said, when you are set, make it big and make it count."
Jaiswal added:
"The way Rohit (Sharma) bhai and Jaddu (Jadeja) bhai played in the first innings really inspired me. The way they played session by session was incredible, the way they put effort motivated all of us.”
Jaiswal is currently the leading run-scorer in the series, with 545 runs in six innings at a staggering average of 109. The youngster will next be in action against the visitors in the fourth Test at JSCA Stadium in Ranchi from February 23.