IND v WI 2018: None of us were even 10 percent of what Prithvi Shaw is at 18, says Virat Kohli

Shaw earned 'Man of the Series' award in his debut Test series against the West Indies.

India won the 2-match Test series quite convincingly | AP

Indian Captain Virat Kohli showered huge praise on explosive opening batsman Prithvi Shaw and expressed that the youngster already captures his and everyone's imagination.

Virat feels that Shaw, who seems to have a matured head over his very young shoulders and has been a prolific run-getter at all levels so far, will definitely carve out a bright future ahead for himself. 

Shaw followed his free-flowing 134 on debut at Rajkot with another dominating knock of 70 in the first innings at Hyderabad, before coming back to finish off the proceedings with 33* in the second. 

It is the confidence and excellent temperament which shined through from Shaw and he reiterated his status as a prodigious talent for the country. 

"He looks like someone who can get you off to the kind of start that you require, especially to make the first mark in any series that you play. It's great to have a guy who is so fearless, and he isn't reckless, he's very confident about his game," Virat was quoted saying after the match, "You might feel like he might nick off one now, but he hardly nicks the ball. And that we saw in England as well, when he was batting in the nets."

"He was attacking but he was in control throughout, which is a very rare quality against a new ball. You know, to play so many shots and be in control of all of them," he added, "It's a great sign. I don't think any of us were even 10 percent of what he is at 18-19. But he has to build on that."

Another youngster who impressed Virat is the wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant. 

Pant followed his brilliant hundred at the Oval, with dominating and free-flowing 92 each at Rajkot & Hyderabad and looked a much improved gloveman in the series. 

"The youngsters, we were looking for them to play with a lot of freedom, which they did. Prithvi was outstanding. Rishabh was really fearless," Virat emphasized, "Areas they need to work, they will obviously be spoken to in that regard. But overall both those guys were really, really good. Solidifying their place in the team and understanding how to play at this level."

"I know the conditions might not be as challenging as they might get in future, but in Test cricket, the first and the most important thing is confidence and understanding that you can score runs at the Test level. From that point of view, I'm very happy that these guys have taken their chance so well," he added. 

(Inputs from India Today)

 
 

By Kashish Chadha - 15 Oct, 2018

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