Impressed by Yashasvi Jaiswal’s composure and maturity, West Indies cricket legend Brian Lara praised the youngster’s knock against Mumbai Indians, describing it as a well-crafted innings. Jaiswal, who ended a lean run with his first century of this IPL season, powered Rajasthan Royals to a dominant nine-wicket victory over MI.
“Yeah, beautiful. But the fact of the matter is, he’s taking his time, looking at the ball right from up at the back, and he’s playing cricketing shots. He’s got all the stuff, he doesn’t have to worry about it,” Lara remarked on Star Sports Cricket Live.
Jaiswal’s innings featured an array of powerful leg-side shots and crisp drives, resulting in an unbeaten 104 from just 60 balls, including nine fours and seven sixes. Lara lauded his ability to control the innings and maintain a high strike rate, highlighting his maturity and responsibility.
“And when you do get on top of the bowlers, that’s when you take it back, because that’s what I love about Yashasvi.
“It was well put together, great cricketing shots, he’s managed throughout the innings, and anyone knows, if you’re chasing such a good total, at Jaipur and you bounce through the innings, you’re soon as going to get there.
“So he’s shown a lot of responsibility, a lot of maturity, and I’m very happy to have him back.”
Medium pacer Sandeep Sharma also earned recognition from Lara for his exceptional bowling performance, taking 5 for 18, the best bowling figures of the ongoing IPL season. Lara highlighted the impact Sharma has had for RR after going unsold at the auction two years ago.
“Very, very big impact, and also mentioned the fact that he went unsold a couple of years ago, and came in as a replacement player, and this man is cherishing every moment he has out in the middle.”
“Every cricketer in India wants to play in the IPL, and they want to play continuously, and that disappointment of not being selected in an IPL auction, he’s now repaying Rajasthan Royals for their belief in him, he is a true professional.
“I’ve watched him over the years, he’s not express-paced, he’s not, you know, one of the boys that, you know, everyone talks about, but he gets the job done every time he goes out in the middle, and he’s just that consummate professional that every team likes to have in their ranks,” Lara said.
Rajasthan Royals’ victory over Mumbai Indians not only consolidated their position at the top of the IPL standings but also brought praise for Sanju Samson’s leadership skills from former Australia skipper Aaron Finch.
“He’s leading the side unbelievably well, you can see how calm RR are when they’re under pressure. And the only game they lost was when they had that meltdown against GT right at the back end of the game, so they’ve been so clinical right throughout this IPL and a lot of credit has to go to Sanju for that,” Finch said.
