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Ahead of the first Test against West Indies, Indian vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane expressed happiness over call-up for young Mumbai batter Yashaswi Jaiswal.
Jaiswal finished as the fifth-highest run scorer in IPL 2023, scoring 625 runs in 15 matches at an average of 48.07, with one century and five fifties. In his 15 first-class cricket appearances, he has scored 1,845 runs at an average of 80.21, with nine centuries and two fifties. Averaging over 80 in his first 26 First Class innings, Jaiswal made 265 in the second innings of the Duleep Trophy Final last year.
Also the most prolific run-scorer and Player of the Tournament at the 2020 U19 Cricket World Cup, Jaiswal was given his first taste of senior international cricket a stand-by squad member for India's World Test Championship 2023 Final tilt against Australia.
Beginning their World Test Championship 2025 cycle in the Caribbean on Wednesday, India are tipped to name Jaiswal in the XI, off the back of a prolific stretch in domestic cricket in all three formats.
"I am so happy for Jaiswal, he has worked so hard, scored runs for Mumbai in domestic cricket and the IPL. He is an exciting talent and the way he is batting is nice. My message to him is that he expresses himself while batting, plays with freedom and does not think much about the fact that he is playing international cricket," Rahane said at a pre-match press conference.
“It's all about, I think, going out in the middle and playing your game, playing with freedom. That is very important. I'm really happy for him."
India will kick off its ICC World Test Championship 2023-25 campaign with a two-Test series against West Indies, with the first Test starting on Wednesday in Dominica.