Legendary Brian Lara hailed Yashasvi Jaiswal for his match-winning knock against Mumbai Indians at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium, Jaipur on Monday. While chasing 180, RR opener Jaiswal got back to form, scoring a majestic knock of 104 runs off just 60 balls, which is his second IPL century.
The left-hander scored nine fours and seven sixes as he played at the top of his game and played an instrumental role in his team’s convincing nine-wicket win.
The southpaw added 109 runs with his skipper Sanju Samson, who scored an unbeaten 38, for the second wicket. Jaiswal had failed to get past the 50-run mark in the first seven matches but it was always a matter of time before he got a big score under his belt as he had amassed 712 runs against England in a five-match Test series.
The aggressive batter also had the rub of the green on his side as he was dropped by Nehal Wadhera when he was on 50. Jaiswal scored his runs at an impressive strike rate of 173.33.
“Yeah, it’s a beautiful innings by the young man. And, when I say, you know, you don’t have to be that aggressive, he still scores at a very high strike rate. But the fact matter is taking his time, looking at the ball right close to the bat and he’s playing proper cricket shots,” said Lara on Star Sports.
The former West Indies batter lauded Jaiswal for batting with maturity against Mumbai Indians and bringing his absolute best.
“And remember, he plays all forms of the game. So, he’s got all the shots. He doesn’t have to worry about it. And when you do get on top of the bowlers and that’s when you take advantage, and that’s what I love about this innings. It was well put together. Great cricketing shots. And anyone knows, if you’re chasing such a total at Jaipur and you’ve got through the innings, then your team is gonna get there. So he took a lot of responsibility, a lot of maturity, and I’m very happy for the young man,” said Lara.
Rajasthan Royals will next take on Lucknow Super Giants at the Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow on Saturday.