Yashasvi Jaiswal is absolutely ready to play Test cricket in England and Australia: Ishant Sharma

Veteran pacer Ishant Sharma believes that the youngster Yashasvi Jaiswal is ready to open for India in English and Australian conditions. Notably, the 21-year-old has been phenomenal on Test debut against West Indies and is seen as a prospect that can serve Indian cricket in the next decade.

Notably, the UP-born cricketer has scored 1845 runs in 15 first-class matches and has also proved his worth in the Indian Premier League. Thus, Jaiswal was handed the opportunity to make his debut on the Caribbean shores and he managed to prove his worth by hitting a scintillating ton.

Meanwhile, talking about his performance in the first Test, Ishant stated that Jaiswal managed to hit cut and pull shots with ease against the new ball and that is a positive sign. He also pointed out that the cricketer refrained from playing cover drives as there is a chance of getting caught behind or in the slips.

"According to me, he is absolutely ready [ to play in England and Australia] because if you see this innings as well, all the boundaries he hit, especially against the new ball, they all came with cut or pull shots," Ishant mentioned while discussing on JioCinema.

“It is a great sign for an opening batter when he refrains from playing a cover drive to a full delivery. If you play the cover drive, there is a chance of you getting caught behind or in the slips. He looked to score runs only with cuts and pulls against the new ball, which is every batter's strength. Whenever the ball was pitched up, apart from an odd loose shot, he either defended it or played with the full face of the bat. This becomes very important for an opener,” he added.

India lead by 162 runs after Day 2

Courtesy of Jaiswal and Rohit Sharma’s terrific century, India are in the driver’s seat of the first Test. Notably, the skipper managed to hit his 10th Test century but couldn’t convert it into something bigger. However, Jaiswal has that opportunity as southpaw went back at unbeaten 143 at stumps.

Batting at No. 3, Shubman Gill lost his wicket rather cheaply but Virat Kohli is once again looking good as the 34-year-old took quite some time to settle down and ended the day unbeaten at 36. His partnership with Jaiswal will be extremely crucial on Day 3 as it can very well define the fate of the match.