The relief couldn’t have been a bigger one for Yashasvi Jaiswal. His expressions said it all as he got that precious single off Gus Atkinson during the second session on Day III of the final Test at The Oval.
That marked the left-handed opener’s second century on his maiden Test tour of England. But more than it being an individual landmark, this innings (118 off 164 balls) proved Jaiswal’s ability to come up with a big knock even when not playing on batting-friendly surfaces.
In the first innings at Headingley, Jaiswal did score a stroke-filled 101 before hitting two 50-plus scores — 87 in Birmingham and 58 in the last Test at Old Trafford. But all these scores came during the first innings in favourable batting conditions.
Besides these, Jaiswal had aggregated only 47 in his other six innings, which is certainly short of the standard expected of him. That way, Saturday’s century certainly helped him finish the series with better numbers — 411 runs at an average of 41.10 — alongside brightening India’s hopes of levelling the series.
Seam and swing-friendly conditions in England pose a big test for any opening batsman. Jaiswal’s dismissal in the first innings at The Oval, following the lean patch he was going through, had shown he still had a lot of work to do.
Yes, the Oval pitch seems to have become a tad easier for batting, yet there’s a bit of purchase for the pacers. It also won’t be wrong to say that fortune favoured Jaiswal as he was dropped twice (on 20 and 40) on Day II, with the second reprieve being a regulation catch put down by substitute fielder Liam Dawson at fine leg.
Still, credit has to be given to Jaiswal for not letting those two instances affect his
concentration. He likes playing the attacking game, and despite those two let-offs,
he continued to back his stroke-play — the cuts, upper-cuts and the drives — which earned him the dividends. The scoring opportunities weren’t missed as Jaiswal struck a much important balance between attack and defence.
Also significant was his adjustment of not committing the front foot early and taking the bat along a path towards the non-striker, particularly when the rival pacers bowled around the wicket to trap him LBW. That did make the task tougher for England’s quicks.