Rohit Sharma stood to welcome the young man. (Credits: Twitter)
Yashasvi Jaiswal half-pulled and half-swept the ball towards square leg, took off for a single, hoisted his arms and soaked in the applause as he became the 17th Indian player to score a century on Test debut. Jaiswal started Day 2 of the first Test against West Indies at 40, and he was unbeaten at stumps, having battled out the entire day. The 21-year-old left-handed opener gradually picked up pace after the lunch break on Day 2, eventually reaching a well-deserved hundred. Jaiswal’s century made him the 17th Indian cricketer to achieve this milestone on his Test debut, with the most recent one being Shreyas Iyer in 2021 against New Zealand in Kanpur.
Team India captain Rohit Sharma too brought up his 10th Test century at the other end. Additionally, Yashasvi Jaiswal became only the third Indian opener to score a Test hundred on his debut, after the likes of Shikhar Dhawan (187 against Australia in 2013) and Prithvi Shaw (134 against West Indies in 2018).
Despite having played just 15 first-class matches in his career prior to this Test, Yashasvi Jaiswal was fast-tracked into the Indian team. He has shown a great appetite to score runs as can be judged from his impressive average of over 80, including nine centuries in first-class cricket. Notably, he recorded a remarkable 265 in the second innings of the Duleep Trophy Final last year.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India took to Twitter to celebrate Yashasvi Jaiswal’s achievement, sharing a video of him returning to the dressing room and being welcomed thunderous applause, standing ovations, and jubilant cheers.
A special Debut _
A special century _
A special reception in the dressing room _
A special mention by Yashasvi Jaiswal __
A special pat on the back at the end of it all __#TeamIndia | #WIvIND | @ybj_19 pic.twitter.com/yMzLYaJUvR— BCCI (@BCCI) July 14, 2023
Rohit Sharma stood to welcome the young man and gave him a pat on the back and accompanied him to the dressing room.
India extended further control on Day 2 of the first Test against West Indies. With both openers, Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal scoring centuries, India ended the day on 312/2. The only batter to miss out was Shubman Gill who departed for 6. At stumps, Virat Kohli (36 runs off 96 balls) was unbeaten with Jaiswal (143 off 350 balls).