Veteran Indian wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik applauded Yashasvi Jaiswal as the latter smashed a Test century on debut against the West Indies on Day 2 of the ongoing Test in Dominica. Karthik was impressed with the way Jaiswal applied himself even when scoring was tough. However, the youngster did face some problems against Rakheem Cornwall’s off-spin, but he showed patience and eventually reached the three-figure mark.
Speaking to Cricbuzz after the end of play on Day 2, Dinesh Karthik said: “He (Jaiswal) is batting on a different planet in many ways because he is very solid in his defense. Rakheem Cornwall troubled him a lot in the morning. But he went through that phase, ensured that he didn’t lose his wicket and then when the opportunity came, he pounced on it.”
Karthik also praised both Jaiswal and Rohit Sharma for adding together a mammoth opening partnership. He added: “They added 229 runs for the first wicket. The last time there was a hundred-run opening partnership, it was between KL and Mayank, and that came in Centurion. It seems like a long time ago, 22 innings ago. This could be the beginning of something special as an opening partnership for India.”
Meanwhile, Dinesh Karthik used the famous words of Ian Bishop to describe Yashasvi Jaiswal’s knock. Bishop had earlier said ‘remember the name’ while being on air when Carlos Brathwaite had smashed four sixes in the final over to help the West Indies won the T20 World Cup 2016. And, Karthik did the same phrase for Jaiswal as he believed the youngster was going to have a long and illustrious career for India as well.
“Yashasvi Jaiswal. I think we will have to ‘remember the name’ as the words by Ian Bishop sir. I have no doubt that he is going to be a very special player. He has got the shots, range, temperament, and hunger that’s going to make him really special. I remember having a conversation with him (Jaiswal) in Goa during the Vijay Hazare Trophy. He wasn’t getting too many runs and there were doubts, but post that he has transformed into something very special,” he stated.
“He (Rohit) did well in white-ball cricket as an opener and has just taken that confidence in Test cricket and decided ‘I will just play the way that I want to play.’ In England, he said that his plan was to leave as many balls as possible. That is the mindset, the clarity, and arguably you can say it (Tests) is his best suit now. Credit to the Indian batters for mentally knowing what needed to be done in the West Indies. I hope they carry this in the bigger games because they tend to struggle on quality pitches and against quality opposition. That is exactly what West Indies lacked, quality,” he concluded.
