After years of hard work, all the setbacks, ups and downs, Yashasvi Jaiswal might feel that it was worth the wait as the youngster won the Player of the Match award for a stellar debut against West Indies in the first Test at Windsor Park in Dominica.
Riding on debutant Jaiswal’s breathtaking knock of 171 runs in 387 balls, the Indian team were able to defeat the Caribbean side by a massive margin of an innings and 141 runs.
The 21-year-old has had a typical rags-to-riches story, fueled by his sheer determination to succeed and represent India at the highest level. As Jaiswal scored his maiden Test century, that too on his debut away from home, becoming the first-ever Indian opener to achieve the milestone in 91 years, the youngster’s childhood coach Jwala Singh beamed with pride saying he knew Jaiswal would start well.
Now that the swashbuckling opener has the world at his feet, he is still looking to count his blessings and stay grounded as he had words full of humbleness after being presented with his maiden Player of the Match award in international cricket on his debut.
Jaiswal said that he had plenty of conversations with coach Rahul Dravid, captain Rohit Sharma and he would continue to look to learn from his seniors.
“Preparation was pretty good. We were having a nice session. Spoke a lot to Rahul Dravid sir. Would like to thank all the selectors and Rohit (Sharma) bhai for having faith in me. It’s really nice, I have been working for this,” Jaiswal told the broadcasters in the post-match presentation ceremony.
He further added, “I’ve been focusing on preparing well and having discipline. Playing Test cricket for India is very special and emotional for me. This is just the start, I need to keep my focus and keep working on my cricket. Lot of people helped me through my journey and I want to thank each and everyone of them. It was tremendous batting with the senior players. I look forward to learning more from them.”
Powered by Jaiswal’s blistering knock in the first innings, India were able to take a massive first-innings lead of 271 runs having earlier restricted the West Indies to a paltry 150 runs. In the second innings, the Caribbean side could only muster up 130 runs as Ravichandran Ashwin ran riot with the ball picking up seven wickets to seal India’s triumph and handing his side a 1-0 lead.
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