India’s in-form batter, Yashasvi Jaiswal, revealed that former Indian Test captain and opening partner Rohit Sharma advised him to continue playing in the fifth and final Test against England at the Kennington Oval in London. The elegant opening batsman hit 118 runs off 164 balls to help the team achieve 396 in the second innings, setting The Three Lions a 374-run mark.
Rohit had a similar experience at The Oval in the second innings, scoring 127 and leading the Indian side to a 157-run victory on the 2021-22 trip. The veteran arrived at the stadium to watch the events on Day 3 of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025, which India must win to avoid a series setback.
“I of course saw Rohit bhai and said hi to him, and he also gave me the message ki ‘Khelte Rehna’ (Keep playing),” Jaiswal revealed during the press conference after the end of day’s play as quoted by The Times of India.
The left-handed Jaiswal has been consistently opening for India in red-ball cricket since his debut in 2023 and shared a close bond with Rohit during the latter’s active days in whites. Jaiswal further stated how playing along with seniors like Rohit and Virat Kohli helped him to tackle situations in the challenging pitches, especially in a long, five-match series.
“I keep getting all these messages and playing with the seniors as long as I have played with Rohit bhai, Virat bhai, so playing with them has helped me a lot to grow as a person, and seeing them what they have done in Test cricket. How they prepared themselves, so I really think it helped me, especially, to improve as a player. Also, playing with all my mates now, like with KL bhai, the way we chat and what we think about the game, and how we think about the game,” Jaiswal added.
There is movement in the wicket, won’t be easy for England: Yashasvi Jaiswal
The Indian team received some assistance from the green top at the ground, but Jaiswal cautioned that it was not as easy as it seemed, pointing out the erratic bounce and seam movement on offer. However, the pitch eased up on Day 3, in contrast to the first two days when 21 wickets fell. It was surprising to see how the surface changed on the third day of the Test.
“I think the ball is bouncing quite a bit, so chances were there that I could play my shots in that region (behind square). If we bowl in the channel, it will be amazing because there is movement in the wicket, swing and seam, it is not that easy to bat,” Jaiswal concluded.
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