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Watch: Kohli corrects chinks in Jaiswal's batting at India nets; has animated chat with Dravid, Gill watches hawkishly
Virat Kohli was in the thick of things during India's practice session ahead of the 1st Test against West Indies.
Young Yashasvi Jaiswal is one of the most exciting prospects to watch out for in the Indian team. Picking as a back-up for the World Test Championship final, the array of strokes he played in his first-ever net session with the senior team was a sight to behold, and although he did not break it into the Playing XI, the selectors showed faith in the 21-year-old and persisted with him for the tour of West Indies. With no Cheteshwar Pujara, Jaiswal is expected to make his India debut in the Barbados Test, despite stiff competition from Ruturaj Gaikwad.
By the look of it, Jaiswal could very well realise his dream of earning a maiden India cap, given his time in the nets during the team's practice session at the Kensington Oval. The left-handed youngster underwent regular drill on Tuesday after which he was approached by none other than Virat Kohli. The former India captain, who himself had a hit out in the nets carefully examined Jaiswal's batting and shared his valuable inputs with the youngster. In a video posted by veteran sports journalist Vimal Kumar, Kohli was seen having a long pep talk with Jaiswal, clearly suggesting a few tweaks in the youngster's technique.
Only cricketers are aware of the smallest of batting nuances; however, it was evident that Kohli was trying to rectify certain chinks in Jaiswal's transfer of weight on to the front foot. Kohli was time and again using his arms to demonstrate the correct way as Jaiswal looked on. After repeated advices, the lessons imparted by Kohli seemed to have worked as Jaiswal was working on the same even via shadow practicing even after Virat left the scene. Kohli's imparting of knowledge was also followed by another youngster Shubman Gill, who observed the entire proceedings with a hawkish eye while putting his pads on.
Watch the video below:
Kohli's riveting chat with Dravid
The video also caught Kohli in a jovial mood as he faced the spin of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja and some medium pace from a net bowler. While the video did not capture Kohli's entire outing in the nets, it did however recorded Kohli in free-wheeling, pleasant and animated conversation with coach Rahul Dravid. The two could be seen laughing and chirping away, gearing up for the series rather lively. These scenes come largely after Team India's memorable meeting with the legendary Garfield Sobers.
The series opener, starting July 12 will mark Kohli's fourth Test tour of the West Indies. In fact, it was against the same team that Kohli had made his debut way back in 2011. In nine Tests, Kohli has scored just 463 runs in West Indies at an average of 35.71, with a highest of 200 during the 2016 tour. While Kohli is set to bat at his favoured No. 4 position, Jaiswal might pip Gaikwad in the race to be the solid No. 3 that India are searching after dropping Pujara. Jaiswal averages a fantastic 80.21 in First-Class cricket in 15 games for Mumbai including nine centuries. With the Indian team making a slow transition starting the fresh 2023-25 World Test Championship cycle, Jaiswal is ready to rock in India colours.
