Yashasvi Jaiswal during his innings against Punjab. Pic: IPLT20.COM
Virender Sehwag reckons Yashasvi Jaiswal must have been hurt after being dropped from the Rajasthan Royals’ (RR) playing XI following a few failures in the franchise’s initial IPL 2022 matches. The former Indian batter hailed the young opener for channelizing his disappointment and converting it into a match-winning performance.
The 20-year-old was named the Player of the Match as RR defeated the Punjab Kings (PBKS) by six wickets in Match 52 of IPL 2022 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday. Rajasthan were set to chase a challenging 190 for victory, but Jaiswal’s 41-ball 68 eased the path for his team’s triumph.
Admitting that sitting out of the last few games must have been frustrating for the left-hander, Sehwag told Cricbuzz:
“It happens sometimes when you are hurt. He must have been thinking – ‘how did I lose my place in the playing XI? I was retained but someone else is playing instead of me’. When a player is hurt, expect him to do well when he comes back.”
Giving the example of the Mumbai Indians’ (MI) Ishan Kishan, the former India opener added:
“Something similar happened with Ishan Kishan last year. He was dropped after failing to score in a number of games. Saurabh Tiwary replaced him and scored a few runs. And then when Kishan came back, he smashed the ball all over the park in a dazzling innings.”
Jaiswal returned to the RR playing XI in IPL 2022 for the first time since April 5, when he featured in a match against RCB at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
“The crucial thing was that he did not get out” – Sehwag credits Yashasvi Jaiswal for building on start
Lavishing praise on the young talent, Sehwag admitted that some of the strokes he played had class written all over them. He stated:
“The way he began left me stunned because he was looking in very good touch. A lot of times, players look in very good form in the nets and the management then decides to play them and see what happens. Some of the shots he played were amazing. A left-hander has a different kind of class and the same was evident in Jaiswal today. ”
He also hailed the batter for guiding the chase and not throwing it away after a good start. The 43-year-old said:
“He was the X-factor in the match and batted for nearly 15 overs. He had partnerships with Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson and Devdutt Padikkal. The crucial thing was that he did not get out (after getting a start). In a chase of 190, you often keep losing wickets at regular intervals, which makes life difficult for the chasing side. Jaiswal didn’t let that happen.”
Following the opener’s dismissal, Shimron Hetmyer smashed an unbeaten 31 off 16 balls to take Rajasthan home.
