- By Gurmeet Batra
- Sun, 03 Aug 2025 07:57 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
IND vs ENG 5th Test: India's swashbuckling young batter Yashasvi Jaiswal opened up about his mental dynamics that fueled his remarkable innings at the Oval against England, revealing a pivotal message from India's former Test captain, Rohit Sharma, who was watching from the stands at the iconic Kennington Oval.
The explosive opener's masterful strokeplay yielded a rich harvest of runs as he slammed a breathtaking 118 off 164 balls, his sixth Test century, with the help of 14 fours and two sixes.
Jaiswal, who had shared the crease and played some explosive innings with Rohit during the time of a seasoned opener's career, revealed how Rohit bolstered his resolve to persevere at the crease.
“Absolutely, the wicket felt a bit difficult, especially where there was some ball movement and seam movement. And about Rohit Bhai—of course, I saw him and he gave me this message: just keep playing. That’s what it was,” said Jaiswal in the press conference at the end of the day’s play.
Talking more about his learnings from the series, Jaiswal said: “It's all about how I fight. Always, the mentality is to go out there and fight it out and enjoy.”
“Because in the end, (and) as I tell myself that it's the game and we need to enjoy the game. That is very important. With that, we should have fun. I am proud of myself and all my teammates. We want fun. We want some battle in the middle. That is the fun. That's why you play Test cricket,” he said.
The young opener faced a baptism by fire as England's heavy pace artillery targeted his rib cage with a barrage of short-pitched deliveries during the series. But he dug deep for composure and concluded the series, amassing 411 runs at an average of 41.10, with two centuries and two fifties.
With 411 runs in the series, Jaiswal's England tour painted a picture of inconsistency, but he stood tall when the team needed him.
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Jaiswal, who enjoyed a bewitched innings with multiple dropped chances, predicted that England's task won't be an easy one as the side have to chase a record 374-run target on day 4.
“The wicket was a little spicy. I was enjoying batting. I was enjoying it a lot. I expect that in England, when you play, you play on a wicket like this. Mentally, I was ready and I was just enjoying. I knew what shot I'm going to play on this surface,” said Jaiswal who shared a 107-run partnership with nightwatchman Akash Deep in the morning session.
“If we can bowl the channel line, it would be good. Batting won't be easy here. We are confident of defending the target.”