Jaiswal, Saxena living the dream
MUMBAI: Mumbai boys Yashasvi Jaiswal and Divyaansh Saxena may have taken contrasting roads to the India U-19 World Cup but both the left-handed batsmen showcased great maturity to help India clinch a place in Sunday’s final.
India versus Pakistan, at whatever level, raises interest and expectations by several notches. And the defending champions romped to a 10-wicket victory in the first semi-finals at Potchefstroom.
Jaiswal struck an unbeaten 105 and Saxena playing a support role hit an unbeaten 59 made light of the target after Pakistan had been dismissed for a modest 172 in 43.1 overs. The victory was set up by an all-round Indian bowling performance, and the openers would not have wanted to allow any Pakistani fight-back with the ball.
Skipper Priyam Garg was all praise for the openers in his postmatch interview. “This isn’t the first time. They have done this for the past one year. They bond well, and that leads to good running between the wickets and good communication. They play together a lot, and this helps complement each other.”
When Jaiswal hoicked one over deep mid-wicket to complete his hundred and seal India’s victory, he lifted his hands in celebration, letting out a cry to release pent up energy built from years of toil. Jaiswal, a native from Badohi, Uttar Pradesh, had come to Mumbai to fulfill his cricket dream, but with no food, money or shelter. And here he was, playing a starring role to help his nation to get one step away from World Cup glory.
On the other hand, Saxena’s father is a scientist at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre. But crucially, when it comes to cricket, both belong to the Dadar Union school of batting. Dadar Union, Mumbai’s cricketing cradle that has stood for discipline and determination, has Sunil Gavaskar and Dilip Vengsarkar amongst its illustrious alumni. “Jaiswal and Saxena would only have heard about Dadar Union stories. But watching them play, I can say they imbibe a lot of its qualities. They showed no fear of the World Cup platform,” says former India skipper Dilip Vengsarkar, whose foundation nurtured both in their early days.
Jaiswal is now the leading runscorer in the competition, having aggregated 312 runs in five games, at an average of 156. Before the World Cup, he was tipped to be one of its stars, having bagged a Mumbai Ranji cap, played for India B in Deodhar Trophy and in many youth India tournaments. In the Vijay Hazare national one-day competition last year, Jaiswal, best known for his organised batting, showed another facet of his cricket, striking 12 sixes to score a double hundred against Jharkhand.
Jwala Singh, his guardian and coach who lent him a helping hand in Mumbai to overcome odds, was in Potchefstroom to witness the knock. Speaking from the ground, after his boy had sealed it with a six, he recalled, “That innings meant a lot to him because the talk in the Mumbai dressing room was he was not going to be considered in the T20 mix for Mumbai. He surprised many with his clean hitting that day.”
Going into the semi-final, India were hoping Jaiswal will extent his fine run with the bat. He had hit three fifties in four innings. Jwala says Jaiswal was confident he was cut out for bigger things and that the hundred is a validation of his ability and promise.
“I had told him before the match he was not a player for half-centuries. A big innings was due. Performing against Pakistan in an U-19 World Cup semi-final is what people will always remember. We had discussed breaking a big innings in two parts, and I am glad he could pull it off,” he adds.
Following his heroics in Vijay Hazare Trophy, Jaiswal was picked by Rajasthan Royals in a bidding war that stopped only at R2.4 crore, handing his maiden IPL berth. For a boy who had lived a hand-to-mouth existence in tents and borrowed money to survive, the sense of achievement was beyond measure. Now he is on the cusp of being a U-19 World Cup winner.
His senior Mumbai teammate Prithvi Shaw and Shubman Gill starred in India’s junior World Cup success two years ago. Both are now in the Test squad in New Zealand. Jaiswal would not be aiming for any less. However, before that Jaiswal, Saxena, Garg and the rest of the players have a final to win, against Bangladesh or New Zealand.