The 18-year-old debutant, Prithvi Shaw admitted of playing his natural after registering his maiden hundred for India on day one of the first Test against Windies at Rajkot.
Meanwhile, Shaw’s century put India on the front foot as they finished the day on 364 for four. Virat Kohli (72*) and Cheteshwar Pujara (86) provided good support as Windies bowlers looked venomless.
However, the visitors started the day on a high sending KL Rahul back to the hut. Since then, India was all over the game with only one or two chances here and there. The flamboyance of Prithvi Shaw was the talking point of the day as his masterclass overshadowed that of Kohli and Pujara.
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Prithvi Shaw played his natural game taking on the bowlers as he showed no sign of pressure cropping up on him. He brought his fifty on style as he marched towards the magical three-figure mark. Soon after lunch, he reached the landmark to become the 15th Indian to score debut Test hundred.
Speaking after the game, the stylish young batsman dedicated his hundred to his father. He also added that he looked to play his natural game and performed according to the merit of the delivery.
“Feeling really good now, after the hundred. I was a bit nervous to start off but when I got in, I got comfortable. In fact, I just tried to play my natural game. I was just thinking that it’s another game for me and then it just happened. Meanwhile, I played the balls on merit and kept going from there on.
I was thinking about my Dad, as he has sacrificed a lot for me. First hundred, it’s all for him. Playing for India, it was a big thing for me. I wanted to make this chance count,” Prithvi Shaw said.
Shaw went on to add that the experience while playing for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy did a world of good for him. The young batsman did an excellent job at the top of the order.
“It was a good challenge for me and I think I did well in front of these guys. From the smaller age, I used to play a lot of school cricket, 30 or 35 school games in a year. I have played a lot of cricket in Ranji and it just keeps going on with so much cricket around.
All that experience has helped me and I played my game accordingly. The wicket was good and I should have kept batting. I should have been a bit careful as there were only 10 minutes left before tea”, Prithvi Shaw signed off.
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