In cricket, comparisons are inevitable, particularly when a young player shows exceptional skill on the field. Yashasvi Jaiswal, the young batter from India, has been in the news lately due to his outstanding performance in the Test series against England. Virender Sehwag, though, responded quickly to the compliments and comparisons, particularly the ones to luminaries like Don Bradman and Sachin Tendulkar.
With a brilliant knock of 209 runs in the second Test match against England, Yashasvi Jaiswal demonstrated his extraordinary talent. And yet, in between the compliments, the parallels started to appear. Fans were quick to compare Jaiswal to some of the greatest names in cricket history, even though he had only played six Tests.
Virender Sehwag responds with a direct response.
With his own directness, Sehwag waved off the parallels right away. Sehwag stated in a virtual conversation from Dubai that although Jaiswal is clearly a skilled batsman, he thinks that making these kinds of comparisons is too soon. Sehwag was reported by HT as saying, “He is a very good batsman but I think comparisons are too early.”
Gautam Gambhir, Sehwag’s former opening partner, endorsed his position, stressing the value of giving young players room to grow without interference. Though he advised against overhyping youthful talents, Gambhir hailed Jaiswal’s incredible achievement.
“Let the young man play. I want to tell everyone that, more significantly, I want to congratulate him on his achievement. As Gambhir had previously stated, “We have observed that in India, we have a tendency, particularly in the media, to overhype their achievements, give them tags, and make them look like heroes.”
The burden of expectation interferes with the players’ ability to play their natural game. Allow him to develop and relish his cricket,” Gambhir continued.
Yashasvi failed to have a significant impact on the scoreboard in the current third Test match in Rajkot after Mark Wood removed her in the first inning, scoring just 10 runs.