Young Indian opener Yashasvi Jaiswal is excited to play the longer format of the game for India after having a stellar IPL season with Rajasthan Royals in 2023. The left-handed batter was named in the Indian squad for the test series against West Indies starting on June 12.
The Mumbai batter has been touted to make his international debut for India in the Carribean tour as he has shown promises in domestic cricket for Mumbai in all three formats of the game. The youngster was one of India’s stand-by players for the recently concluded ICC World Test Championship replacing Ruturaj Gaikwad in the team.
Speaking At the Indian Express Idea Exchange, Yashasvi Jaiswal is grateful to be picked for the West Indies tour, stating that he enjoys a lot playing the red-ball Cricket and added that at whichever level he plays cricket he tries to maximize his potential to play longer innings for his team
“For me, it’s very important, because I was always playing with the red ball. I really enjoyed it. Mumbai cricket has that legacy that wherever you are playing, even if it is school cricket or club cricket, there are games that go on for three, four, or five days. You hear people are scoring more runs in those games,”
“I’d always say to myself that if I’m set, make sure that I’m making it big and taking responsibility for the team. That’s why we enjoy red ball cricket a lot,” Yashasvi Jaiswal said.
Indian team have added new faces in the team for the West Indies tour and Yashasvi Jaiswal is slated to play at No.3 spot for the team in the absence of the experienced Cheteshwar Pujara. Team India is scheduled to play 2 Tests, 3 ODIs, and 5 T20Is against the West Indies starting on July 12.
I Try To Focus More On Cricketing Shots – Yashasvi Jaiswal
Yashasvi Jaiswal believes that playing the longer format of the game helps to improve the mental toughness of any player as tests them under different circumstances.
Test cricket has been the pinnacle of the game despite the distractions available with short-form franchise competitions and added that he will try to focus on playing different cricketing shots, stating that he would look same shots in the longer format of the game.
“Playing the longer format helps me improve my mental toughness which is really important because you are going to be tested in different situations against different bowlers. It’s a lot of fun,” he stated.
“Overall, I try to focus more on cricketing shots. It doesn’t matter which format I’m playing. What matters is which shot I’m playing and how I’m playing it. The only thing on my mind is how I’m building my innings,” Yashasvi Jaiswal added.
In 15 matches in first-class cricket, Jaiswal has amassed 1845 runs at an average of 80.31, apart from scores of 213 and 144 in the Irani Cup against Madhya Pradesh. The left-handed youngster did reasonably well in this year’s Ranji Trophy as he amassed 315 runs for Mumbai at an average of 45.00 and will look to do well for the Men in Blue if provided the opportunity in the West Indies tour.