South Africa when it comes to Indian cricket has always being a final frontier to be captured in the longest format of the game. Though India has recorded some finest wins on the African shore the dream to win a test match series in South Africa still remains the dream and the goal for the touring Indian team.
Since its inception into cricket in 1992 , many cricket teams from India in the past have toured South Africa for a test series but were successful in winning only few test matches not the series the best being (1-1) in 2010-11 under the leadership of MS Dhoni. This time when India takes on South Africa for a series starting on Boxing day the Rahul Dravid led management and the Rohit Sharma led team will aim for a series win against a strong bowling line up.
As the squad for series misses the services of experienced Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane impetus will be on the performance of Indian youngsters given a chance to prove their ability and shine for India. One such youngster would be Yashasv Jaiswal who has already being grabbing headlines for his transition from being a Panipuri seller to an elegant batting prodigy for India due to his exceptional performances as opener in domestic as well as International circuits.
Rising to fame in the Under 19 world cup to marking his mark as a swashbuckling opener in the IPL where he grabbed eyeballs by outclassing the likes of his own team mate Jos Buttler to an impressive debut in Test cricket on West Indies shore where he scored 171 runs in his first innings, Yashasvi Jaiswal’s temperament to bat in difficult situations has impressed every cricket legends as well as experts.
It’s going to be a test for Yashasvi Jaiswal- Sunil Gavaskar
Indian batting legend Sunil Gavaskar has backed Yashasvi Jaiswal to shine in the upcoming Test series in South Africa, suggesting the youngster’s temperament will hold him in good stead.
Jaiswal made his debut against the West Indies earlier this year on the back of some sensational numbers in domestic red-ball cricket. The left-handed batter marked his first Test innings with a 171-run knock, followed by another 95 runs in his second, hinting at a bright future.
Speaking to Star Sports, Gavaskar highlighted his observations about Jaiswal.
“Yes, it’s going to be a test for him. But I do believe that he has got the capability to thrive in these conditions too. What I have seen of him in Test matches is that he plays the ball very late, his head is very still, he gets into the line quite nicely. He is not looking to rush at the ball. He plays it very late, he loves to give himself time in the middle,” Sunil Gavaskar explained.
Jaiswal gathered some experience of playing in South Africa through the two T20Is against the Proteas in the recently concluded series. While he was out for a duck in the second T20I, he made a swashbuckling 60 in the third guiding India (1-1) series draw in the recently concluded T20I series on African shores.
If you survive 12 overs, then nobody can get you out – Sunil Gavaskar
Indian legend now commentator also through his experience stated what needs to be done by the Indian batters to survive on the hostile South African conditions especially in Red ball cricket. He underlined the fact that Indian batters must survive the new-ball burst against the Proteas in the Test series if they wish to pile on big runs.
“I think, when the Kookaburra ball is used in places like South Africa and Australia, the first 12 overs are important because the ball does nothing after that. If you survive 12 overs, then nobody can get you out if you are a good batter. So that’s what Yashasvi has to say to himself. If you can be alright for the first 10-12 overs, you can make big runs,” he explained.
It would be rather interesting to see how the Indian batters uses this piece of advice to succeed this time around when the Boxing Day test starts on 26th December 2023 to win the series and capture their dream on this final frontier of winning a Test match series.