Yashasvi Jaiswal garners immense praise from Shoaib Akhtar
What's the story
Rookie Indian opener Yashasvi Jaiswal scaled new heights with his unbeaten century, as he propelled India U-19 to the final of the ongoing World Cup.
It was his ton, along with his unbeaten 176-run opening stand with Divyansh Saxena, that allowed them to decimate arch-rivals Pakistan.
Meanwhile, Jaiswal's knock has earned him the praise of former Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar.
Here's what he said.
Exceptional talent
Akhtar believes Jaiswal would travel places with India in cricket
Speaking on Jaiswal, Akhtar recalled the former's childhood struggles and said that this guy would fight for his place in the team and would travel the world with the Indian team.
"He has the power, passion and interest for the game. He will represent the senior team, this a guarantee. He is running behind excellence and money is running behind him now," he said.
Struggles
Akhtar recalls Jaiswal's childhood struggles
Akhtar explained Jaiswal's childhood story, when he came from his village in Uttar Pradesh to Mumbai and used to sleep in milk diaries.
He used to sell paani-puris to his teammates to earn his living, while he was offered a tent by his club groundsman only upon Jaiswal's promise of remaining not out in the next game.
Quote
India's future is in the right hands: Akhtar
"They won it comprehensively. Indian team deserves praise and they must be told that there are some players in your team who will surely represent India in the future. I am very happy to see that India's future is in the right hands," asserted Akhtar.
Jaiswal's performance
Jaiswal has been the find of the tournament so far
As far as Jaiswal's performance is concerned in the tournament, he has been the find of it.
So far, he has scored 312 runs in five innings at an average of 156, including a century and three half-centuries.
Currently, he is the highest run-scorer in the entire tournament.
He has also been picked up by Rajasthan Royals (RR) for Rs. 2.4 crore.
Match report
How did the match pan out?
Winning the toss, Pakistan elected to bat first, as they were bundled out for a below-par total of 172, courtesy Sushant Mishra's 3/28.
Haider Ali and Rohail Nazir were Pakistan's top run scorers, scoring 56 and 62, respectively.
In reply, the Pakistan bowlers had no answer to India's lethal batting, as Jaiswal and Saxena's opening stand was enough to seal the tickets for final.