Rohit Sharma and Jaiswal. (Photo Source: Getty images)
India’s new opening pair, Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal, have been sensational so far in the longest format of the game. In both matches against West Indies, the pair registered 100-run plus opening stands, giving India a perfect start. Lauding them for their brilliant batting so far, veteran stumper-batter Dinesh Karthik stated that the duo complement each other really well, as their batting approach is very different from one another.
Notably, on Day 1 of the second Test, the duo stitched a 139-run partnership, which put immense pressure on the home team, especially when they lost the first game of the series. Rohit looked to take some time in order to settle down, while Jaiswal was playing an aggressive brand of cricket, which gave India a great start, and that really impressed Karthik.
“It definitely looks like something that is going to be really fruitful for Team India. The way they bat is very different from each other. They complement each other,” Karthik said while speaking to Cricbuzz.
“You can say that the West Indies bowling pedigree (isn’t at par with) the likes of Australia or England. I don’t think we can hide from that fact. But what you need to give them credit for is the way they have approached it,” Karthik added.
West Indies opting to bowl surprised me: Karthik
On a surface that is tailor-made for the batters to succeed, West Indies skipper Kraigg Brathwaite opted to bowl first in the second Test, which according to Karthik, was very surprising. He believes that the home team could have taken advantage of that, but instead, Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal made the most out of it.
“West Indies won the toss, and what was surprising was the decision that they chose. They chose to bowl first on what looked like a really flat pitch. Why I said the decision was surprising was because the Indian openers, as usual, got off to a lovely start,” said Karthik.