Young Indian opener Yashasvi Jaiswal was named in India’s T20I and Test squad for the upcoming tour of South Africa. Indian captain Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli won’t be available for the T20I and ODI series and Mohammad Kaif feels Jaiswal can be a great fit for the Men in Blue.
The former Indian batter believes that Yashasvi will be a perfect fit in the absence of Rohit and Kohli in South Africa, while predicting that the young opener can be the next big player for Team India.
Kaif was also highly impressed with Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, and Akshar Patel’s performances in the recent T20I series against Australia at home. However, he still feels Jaiswal brings an X factor to the India team with his batting.
Mohammad Kaif told Firstpost: “I’m very impressed with lots of players. Ruturaj Gaikwad has been playing well. Jaiswal is ready, he will take over. Because I’ve seen him in the IPL and I’ve seen him in domestic cricket. I judge a player by his Ranji form, how he plays in four-day matches, then different leagues. IPL is the toughest league in the world and he’s dominating over there.”
Kaif added, “Jaiswal has done really well and his First-Class record is stellar. Gaikwad’s also in the line. There are a lot more such as Ishan Kishan. Axar Patel has been really good since coming back from an injury. But I’ll make special mention of Jaiswal as there is an X-factor about his batting.”
Notably, the three-match T20I series between India and South Africa is set to start from December 10. India will also play three ODIs and two Tests on their upcoming South Africa tour.
(With Firstpost Inputs)
