Vizag, India

Former opener Gautam Gambhir has asked the Indian fans not to overhype Yashasvi Jaiswal’s 209 in the first innings of the Vizag Test against England. Gambhir - the last Indian left-hander to complete a Test double ton (in 2008 against Australia), urged everyone to let Jaiswal enjoy his cricket instead of putting pressure on him.

Advertisment

Jaiswal carried his bat on day one, remaining unbeaten on 179. On day two, alongside Ravi Ashwin and the tail, he completed his maiden Test double hundred, hitting a superb 209 off 290 balls. He also became the third youngest batter from the country to unlock this milestone.

×

Speaking about Jaiswal’s whirlwind knock in Vizag, Gambhir said he appreciates his innings but would hold himself back from commenting on his knock only to avoid overburdening him with expectations.

Advertisment

"I want to congratulate the youngster for his achievement, but more importantly, I want to tell everyone that let the young man play. We have seen in the past that in India we have a habit, especially the media, to overhype their achievements and give them tags and make them look like heroes," Gambhir told PTI during an interaction.

ALSO READ: Ganguly urges BCCI to prepare ‘good wickets’ for home Tests, backs seamers to do well in all conditions

Gambhir added with additional pressure, players often fall short of applying themselves and playing natural shots, which restricts them from scoring freely. 

Advertisment

"The pressure of expectation gets the better of them, and the players are not able to play their natural game. Let him grow and enjoy his cricket," Gambhir added.

Gambhir backs Iyer, Gill

Speaking further, Gambhir backed the under-firing pair of Shreyas Iyer and Shubman Gill, who failed to notch big scores in the past few outings in Tests. While both, on selected occasions, have got off to decent starts lately, none has managed to go past the fifty-run mark. 

Gambhir - having endured such runs in the past, knows how it feels to fall on the other side of things, said both batters are quality players and have proved themselves before with their performances.

"We should give them time as they are quality players, and they have shown it in the past with their performance. That is why they are playing for India," said the former Indian batsman.

Meanwhile, India stands tall after the second day’s play in Vizag, leading by 171 runs. 

Jasprit Bumrah starred for the hosts in the second innings, picking six wickets, including removing Captain Ben Stokes and last game’s hero Ollie Pope.