BGT: Pujara advises Jaiswal to take his time at the crease
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New Delhi, Dec 23 (NationPress) Veteran Indian batter Cheteshwar Pujara feels that Yashasvi Jaiswal is attempting to rush through his innings during the current Border-Gavaskar Trophy series. He advised the left-handed opener to allow himself a little more time at the crease.
So far, Jaiswal has scored a total of 193 runs across three Tests, with an impressive 161 runs coming from his remarkable second innings performance in Perth, where India secured a win by 295 runs. However, since then, Jaiswal has found it challenging to get going, as evidenced by his scores of 0, 24, 4, and 4 not out.
“He needs to give himself a bit more time; the way he is playing indicates he is trying to rush things and is eager to play shots. He should only execute shots when he is confident, particularly in the first 5-10 overs, because it seems like he is in a hurry to accumulate runs, aiming for a quick start and looking to score those initial 15-20 runs swiftly,” Pujara remarked.
“As an opener in Test cricket, you shouldn't go out searching for the ball; you must play deliveries on their merit. Even aggressive players like Virender Sehwag would only play shots when the ball was in their hitting zone,” he added.
“While there are many aggressive batters and openers in today’s Test cricket, they only play shots when the ball is in their hitting zone. It appears that Yashasvi is trying to force shots, attempting to drive deliveries that are not pitched up,” Pujara explained on Star Sports.
Throughout this series, Jaiswal has been dismissed four times by left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc, and Pujara has urged the young player to defend more effectively and learn from how his senior opening partner KL Rahul capitalizes on fuller balls. “He needs to maintain his composure and spend more time at the crease; if he displays confidence in his defense, that's when he will encounter deliveries suitable for shot-making,” he advised.
“The moment you show respect to the bowlers and defend well, they will seek to claim wickets, leading to an adjustment where they start pitching the ball a bit higher. That is when you can play those drives, similar to how KL Rahul executes drives on overpitched deliveries; Yashasvi should do likewise.”
The Border-Gavaskar Trophy series is currently evenly poised at 1-1, with the next match scheduled for Boxing Day at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Thursday.
