Former England captain, Alastair Cook heaped rich praise on Yashasvi Jaiswal, making a quirky comparison of his entire Test career with the Indian opener’s blazing innings in Rajkot Test. Cook mentioned that Jaiswal hit more sixes in an innings that he did in his entire Test career.
Jaiswal was on a six-hitting and record-breaking spree on Day 4 of the 3rd Test against England in Rajkot on February 18, Sunday. The explosive opener notched up his 2nd consecutive double century, becoming only the 3rd Indian after Vinod Kambli and Virat Kohli to achieve this feat. The highlight of his knock was the record sixes that he slammed during his innings. His 214-run knock was laced with 12 sixes and 14 fours.
“Yashasvi Jaiswal hit more sixes in an innings than I did in my entire career,” Cook said on TNT Sports.
Cook retired from Test cricket in 2018, bringing down the curtains on his illustrious career that spanned 12 years. In the 161 Test matches, Cook smashed 11 sixes with 12,472 runs at an average of 46.95. The veteran player rightly pointed out that the Indian opener hit more sixes than he ever smashed in his entire Test career.
JASBALL TRUMPS ENGLAND’S BAZBALL
India’s explosive opener equalled Wasim Akram’s record of most sixes in an innings of 12. India, have hit 48 sixes in the 3 Test matches so far and 22 of those have come from Jaiswal’s bat. He surpassed Rohit Sharma’s 19 to hit the most sixes in a Test series by an Indian. Jaiswal unleashed an assault on England’s veteran pacer, James Anderson, as he was smashed for a hat-trick of sixes. Interestingly, the opener had retired hurt on Day 3 of the Test due to back spasms and chose to return to the field on the next day after Shubman Gill’s wicket.
The 22-year-old was soon accompanied by his Mumbai and now India teammate, Sarfaraz Khan, as the duo showcased brilliant ability of power-hitting in their 172-run stand in just 26.2 overs. The duo guided India to a mammoth lead of 575 runs and deflated England’s bowling attack. England’s batters crumbled at 122 runs and India registered their biggest ever win in terms of runs. The victory by a 434-run margin propelled India to take a 2-1 lead in the 5-match Test series.
