RAJKOT: On day two of the Rajkot Test, even as Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley went about their business against Indian pacers, there was an interesting pattern emerging. Dhruv Jurel was keeping wickets, Sarfaraz Khan at first slip and Yashasvi Jaiswal at second. Shubman Gill, meanwhile, was at covers. That slip cordon and the close-in field was an indication of something significant.
Indian cricket’s red-ball transition has been in progress for a while now. However, what one could witness in Rajkot was a clear representation of where the Indian team is in terms of the transition. Jurel and Jaiswal — batch of 2020 U19 World Cup — Gill (2018) and Sarfaraz (2014 and 2016) have come of age in a way that was visible ten years ago.
Back in 2013-14, India’s Test team post-Sachin Tendulkar's retirement had Shikhar Dhawan, Cheteshwar Pujara and Rohit Sharma (2006 U19 WC batch), Virat Kohli (2008 WC) and Ravindra Jadeja (2006 and 2008 U19 WCs). For the better part of the next decade, (Rohit would be in and out of the Test side), these are the names that featured and defined the Indian Test line-up.
Ten years on, Jaiswal is dominating as an opener. Gill is settling into No.3 and Sarfaraz made a mark on debut at No. 5. Now, Kohli (at No. 4) and Rishabh Pant could come back and take their place in the team whenever they do. That said, these bunch of U19 cricketers could well define what the Indian batting line-up looks like in years to come.
No, it is not a superlative claim. Neither is it a psychobabble where the analogy fits the bill. Sarfaraz, senior most of the lot, broke into the national side finally after piling on runs in the Ranji Trophy like Pujara did. Gill, after being the anointed batting prodigy when he broke in, is settling in at No. 3. Then there is Jaiswal, the youngest of the lot, who could well be the next all-format super star. The Mumbai batter dominated red-ball cricket and upskilled himself for the shortest format. Jurel, while making a mark in the Indian Premier League, loves red-ball cricket and has had a good start so far.
But let’s be clear. Barring Jaiswal, none of the other batters have sealed their spots for the foreseeable future. Yes, Gill scored runs in the last two Tests but at the same time, he would want to continue the same. Jaiswal, on the other hand, has taken Test cricket like fish to see. Century on debut, back-to-back double centuries in this series — Jaiswal had heaped praise not just from India, but the opposition camp as well.
Ben Stokes, England captain, after the match in Rajkot, said: “If I said I didn’t think he [Jaiswal] was any good, it’d be a rogue thing [laughs]. Geez, he’s a great player to watch. I enjoy watching good players, even if it’s against me. (Watching him) today (Sunday) reminded me of watching Rishabh Pant. Pant is someone I love watching play. Early on, he took his time to get in, he struggled, but he sensed his opportunity to go after us and he did. He has had a fantastic start to his career, playing another unbelievable innings against us here.”
And it comes as no surprise that not just Stokes, but every single person in the cricketing fraternity is talking about Jaiswal. This is why, when Rohit said “Itna bas hai abhi ke liye (this is enough for now)" you know where he was coming from. "I won't say anything on Jaiswal. Everyone is talking about him. Let him play. He is playing well, it's good for us and he is in good form. I am not going to say much more than that,” he said.
You can clearly see that the Indian captain wants to protect the youngster and does not want to say more than he should adding unnecessary pressure or hype around Jaiswal. The same goes for Sarfaraz and Gill. As much as the former has played two U19 World Cups and is media trained from a very young age, Sarfaraz knows he is still finding his feet at the top level.
Gill, who would have been all but dropped if not for the century in the second innings of the Visakhapatnam Test, knows what is at stake as well. These are three key slots of a batting line-up we are talking about — an opener, a No. 3, and a No. 5 (at least for now). And this is where the selectors and the team management had to be credited for backing them and not panicking when KL Rahul got injured.
What augurs well for the youngsters is — as was the case for Kohli and Pujara in 2012 — they have a long year of home Test season to buy themselves at least one full overseas cycle. Two more Tests against England, three against New Zealand and two against Bangladesh before India start travelling in late 2024. They will begin with an Australia tour in December this year and another five-Test series in England next year.
By the end of that England tour in July 2025, if the three of them had sealed their spots in the Indian Test team, it is safe to say that Jaiswal, Gill and Sarfraz will define Indian Test batting till the end of this decade.
For they have shown enough promise to reaffirm that they belong at this level. That they are here to stay for years to come.