A knock as epic as 209 is bound to spark comparisons irrespective of what stage of his career the cricketer is in. Yashasvi Jaiswal, earlier this month, during the second Test against England in Visakhapatnam, smashed a record-unbeaten 179 on Day 1 of the match and later converted it into his maiden double century, which set the foundation for India's emphatic series-levelling win of 108 runs. Following the big knock, former India cricketers went ga-ga as they compared the youngster, all with an experience of just six Tests, with Sir Don Bradman and Sachin Tendulkar. India legend Virender Sehwag, with whom Yashasvi was also compared, however, shut the talk with a no-nonsense response.
Yashasvi has been impressive in the ongoing Test series against England. He was century-bound in the opening game in Hyderabad, before being dismissed by 80, which drew criticism over his aggressive approach, but he remained unfazed as he stuck to his natural game in the second Test despite wickets tumbling at regular intervals on the other end. Yashasvi, showing immense maturity throughout, took the game single-handedly against the England attack to score 209 runs as he became the third-youngest India batter to score a double ton and the first left-hander since 2009.
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Comparisons too early: Sehwag on Jaiswal
Speaking to PTI Bhasha in a virtual interaction from Dubai on Wednesday, Sehwag seemed unhappy with all the comparison talk yet but hailed Yashasvi as a good batsman.
{{/usCountry}}Speaking to PTI Bhasha in a virtual interaction from Dubai on Wednesday, Sehwag seemed unhappy with all the comparison talk yet but hailed Yashasvi as a good batsman.
{{/usCountry}}"He is a very good batsman but I think comparisons are too early," Sehwag said.
This was the second time a former India batter spoke on the same lines, with Gautam Gambhir, Sehwag's former opening partner, being the other. The ODI World Cup winner, following Yashasvi's double century, acknowledged the knock but admitted that he wasn't in favour of over-hyping it.
“I want to congratulate the youngster for his achievement, but, more importantly, I want to tell everyone that let the young man play. We have seen in the past that in India we have a habit, especially the media, to over-hype their achievements, and give them tags and make them look like heroes,” Gambhir had told PTI during an interaction earlier this month.
“The pressure of expectation gets the better of them, and the players are not able to play their natural game. Let him grow, and, enjoy his cricket,” added Gambhir.