Harare: Yashasvi Jaiswal doesn’t want himself and nor his opening partner Shubman Gill to be burdened by the weight of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma who have ‘incredible things’ for the Men in Blue in the shortest format. Both Kohli and Rohit retired from T20Is last month putting Jaiswal and Gill in line to take their legacy forward.
Jaiswal, who was a part of the Indian team that won the T20 World Cup, last month, termed it a ‘blessing’ to share the change room with the two contemporary greats. However, he insisted not to be burdened by the expectations so early in careers.
“I think what they have done for Indian cricket is just incredible and being a part of that dressing room is a blessing. We (him and Gill) are trying to take it match-by-match and one day at a time, focussing on the process,” Jaiswal, whose unbeaten 93, helped India beat Zimbabwe by 10 wickets in the fourth T20I.
Jaiswal also shared an unbroken 156-run stand with skipper Shubman Gill. Unlike other youngsters, who start with the shortest format and then move on to traditional forms, it has been the other way round for the Mumbai southpaw, who established himself as a Test opener and now is showing his T20 prowess.
So, does it help if one has played Test cricket? “It does help to control emotions a lot and read the game better as there are different situations on the ground. And every time you talk to Rohit bhai or Virat bhaiyya, I get a lot of experience, enjoy talking to them and learning from them,” Jaiswal said.
For someone with a wide range of shots in his repertoire, Jaiswal believes that it is only practice that can make a man perfect. “I think its not easy and work hard on my practice and try to prepare a lot and try to execute and express myself and enjoy the game.
“My mindset is simple. If I have to take someone (a bowler) on, I will take him on and keep believing that I can do it,” said the 22-year-old, who has scored 631 runs at a strike-rate of 161 plus in 19 T20Is. Life has changed completely in last one year as he tasted stardom but Jaiswal is still processing it.
“To be honest, a lot of things happened in my life. I am really enjoying it. I just try take one day at a time and make sure I enjoy the moment which is very important. “Everything else is in God’s hands and whatever he gives, I will take it,” he concluded.
