'They'll become superstars not only in India, but in world cricket': Taylor names 2 youngsters who've impressed him most

Weighing in on the promising bunch of Indian youngsters, New Zealand great Ross Taylor reserved high praise for two players in particular, both of whom he played against in extremely different conditions.

Ross Taylor has a fine record against India. In fact, after England, against India is where Taylor excelled the most in ODIs, scoring 1385 runs at an average of almost 48. In Tests, Taylor had 890 runs to go with 349 more in T20Is; decent numbers one would say. All that however, pales in comparison to one moment – hitting a four that made New Zealand the World Test Champions on June 23 last year. Ever since, it has been a topsy-turvy 10 months. After the WTC final against India, Taylor did not play any cricket for five months, before returning for the two Tests in Kanpur and India. Ironically, in what would turn out to be his final two games against one of the teams he loved batting against, Taylor registered scores of 11, 2, 1 and 6.

Ross Taylor has high hopes from India's star youngster duo. (BCCI/Getty)

This Indian team was a lot similar to the one Taylor and New Zealand faced at the Ageas Bowl. But soon, all was to change. As a matter of fact, between November and March, a lot has. Virat Kohli is no longer captain, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane have been axed and Taylor is retiring three ODIs later. He has always reserved the highest of compliments for the Indian team… and in his final three Tests against them, witnessed something special – the emergence of a fearless and ruthless crop of Indian cricketers.

Weighing in on the promising bunch of Indian youngsters, Taylor reserved high praise for two players in particular, both of whom he played against in extremely different conditions, Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer. Taylor witnessed from close quarters how contrasting-yet-effective both are. Pant is the maverick, while Iyer is old school. One believes in not holding back, whereas the other is ready to grind it out as per the situation. If any doubts persist, go through their contrasting knocks in the first innings of the pink-ball Test against Sri Lanka in Bengaluru and you'll get it. The one thing they both have in common though, as per Taylor, is that both are tremendous young talents who will take Indian cricket forward.

"I don't think you can call Rishabh Pant young now, would you? He has been around for a while. Shreyas Iyer… When I first saw him, I think it was 2016-17. We played a warm-up game just at the back of Mumbai and he played with a lot of confidence. Obviously, all Indians play spin well. But the way he has taken to international and Test cricket. If there was ever a question-mark, it was over his red-ball credentials but he has put that to bed very quickly and that extra responsibility of being the captain at Kolkata I think will be great… learning from Brendon and some experienced players," Taylor told Hindustan Times in an interview.

"Kyle Jamieson is the future of New Zealand cricket, but Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant, in 5-6 years' time, are going to be the superstars of not only Indian cricket but world cricket as well."

Besides Iyer and Pant, another young prospect that excites Taylor is the guy he mentioned, Kyle Jamieson. The 27-year-old all-rounder has witnessed a meteoric rise in international cricket, more for his bowling, claiming 66 wickets in 14 Tests. These include 5 five-wicket-hauls, Jamieson needed just eight Tests to get to. And when it comes to India, he raises his game. It's like facing the 'Final Boss' in a video game. His maiden five-for came only in his second Test, where his figures of 5/45 dismantled India in Christchurch. He returned to haunt Virat Kohli's India again a year later, this time in the WTC final, where his 5/31 knocked the stuffing out of the world's No.1-ranked Test team. Identifying Jamieson as a fast learner, Taylor backed the next big thing in international cricket to have a long career and achieve greater heights with New Zealand.

"His rise has been very quick and he has learnt a lot along the way. The attributed that he has… he is tall, getting quicker and better, able to swing the ball both ways. And he has got some valuable runs. He started out cricket as a batter but I guess when you are over 2 meters tall, you might as well bowl as well," Taylor mentioned.

"Like anyone, he's at that stage of his career. He got off to a very good start and is still doing very well but he is still learning his game. He had a fantastic series but not as well as he did at the start of his career. As I said before, he is a very quick learner. A lot of guys in New Zealand cricket are making their debuts at 29, 30, 31… so I think he is going to be a very important member being in his 20s and having a bit of longevity. Hopefully, he has a decade-long career for New Zealand because Wagner, Boult, Southee… they are not going to be around forever. It's up to KJ to continue to learn of them and be the spearhead of their attack for the years to come."