Yashasvi Jaiswal of India bats watched by England wicketkeeper Ben Foakes during day one of the 5th Test Match between India and England (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images)
Yashasvi Jaiswal earned the Player of the match Award for his twin fifties in India’s stunning seven-wicket win against Bangladesh in the second Test at Green Park in Kanpur. Jaiswal smashed 72 off just 51 deliveries in the first innings before hammering 51 off 45 deliveries in the second. He was one of the biggest proponents of India’s own new version of ‘Bazball’ which they adopted to make up for lost time and maximize their chances of victory at Kanpur.
Jaiswal has played only 11 matches in his Test career but has already made a name for himself in red-ball cricket. RG looks at some of the numbers that define his magnificent start in the five-day format.
Second-fastest Indian to 1000 Test runs
Jaiswal raced to the milestone of 1000 Test runs in his 16th inning in Test cricket in the fifth Test against England at Dharamsala in March this year. He became the second-fastest Indian (in terms of number of innings) to the 1K Club after Vinod Kambli, who reached the landmark in his 14th inning. Just for perspective, Cheteshwar Pujara (18 innings), Mayank Agarwal (19 innings) and Sunil Gavaskar (21 innings) complete the top 5 for India.
Overall, Jaiswal is the 10th fastest to reach 1000 runs in the history of Test cricket! And the third-fastest in the last 50 years after Kamindu Mendis (13 innings) and Kambli (14 innings).
Third-highest average in Test history
Jaiswal has blasted 1217 runs in 11 Tests at an average of 64.05 with three hundreds and seven fifties. His batting average places him at number 3 on the all-time list (minimum 1000 runs) only after Sir Don Bradman (average of 99.94) and Kamindu Mendis (91.27). Still, early days, but as far as starts go, it does not get better than this!
Fourth-highest strike rate for India in Test cricket
Jaiswal is a match-winner for India at the top of the order. He scores big runs at a rapid rate making him an invaluable asset in Test cricket. The left-hander not only demoralizes the opposition new-ball attack by his aggressive stroke-play upfront but also creates enough time for the Indian bowlers to dismiss the opposition twice, especially in Indian conditions – something which Virender Sehwag did brilliantly for India in the 2000s.
Jaiswal's strike rate of 71.67 in Test cricket places him at number 4 for India (min. 1000 runs) after Sehwag (strike rate of 82.23), Kapil Dev (80.91), and Rishabh Pant (74.14). Among contemporary batters (those who have played at least one Test in the last couple of years), only Harry Brook (strike rate of 86.79), Ben Duckett (86.18), and Pant (74.14) have a higher scoring rate than Jaiswal.
Highest run-getter in the world since Test debut
Jaiswal has had a stunning start to his Test career and is the leading run-getter in the world since his debut against West Indies at Roseau in July 2023. Jaiswal has an aggregate of 1217 runs in 11 Tests (20 innings) and is followed by Joe Root (aggregate of 1166 runs in 13 Tests/ 23 innings) and Kamindu Mendis (943 runs in 7 Tests/12 innings). The next Indian on the list is Rohit Sharma with an aggregate of 742 runs in 11 Tests/20 innings – a good 475 behind Jaiswal!
Hundred on Test debut
Jaiswal smashed a magnificent 171 on Test debut against West Indies at Roseau in July, 2023. He consumed as many as 387 deliveries and spent more than 8 hours at the crease adjusting his attacking game to the slow and low conditions at the venue. Jaiswal became the 17th Indian to record a hundred on Test debut.
Jaiswal joins Lara in a unique club
Jaiswal blasted a brilliant 209 in the second Test against England at Visakhapatnam in February this year. The second-highest score in the innings was just 34 (Shubman Gill), showcasing Jaiswal’s ability to score tough runs under pressure when every other batter had failed. It was only the seventh instance in Test cricket history when a batter recorded a double ton with no other teammate registering even a fifty in the innings. Jaiswal joined the ranks of Brian Lara (vs Aus, 2005), Marvan Atapattu (vs Zimbabwe, 1999), Dennis Amiss (vs West Indies, 1974), Arthus Morris (vs England, 1951), Leonard Hutton (vs West Indies, 1950) and Dudley Nourse (vs Australia, 1935).
Two double hundreds in a series & most sixes in a Test innings
Jaiswal created history when he piled on a brilliant unbeaten 214 off just 236 deliveries against England in the third Test at Rajkot in 2024. He became the third Indian batter to record two consecutive double-hundreds after Vinod Kambli and Virat Kohli. Jaiswal also joined Vinoo Mankad (vs. New Zealand at home in 1955-56) and Kohli (vs. Sri Lanka at home in 2017-18) and became the third Indian to record two double hundreds in a Test series!
Jaiswal also broke another world record during his double hundred at Rajkot. He smashed 12 sixes in the innings which are the joint-most in an innings in Test cricket history – Wasim Akram had also hammered 12 sixes against Zimbabwe at Sheikhupura in 1996.
Nikhil Narain is a die-hard cricket romantic, published author, and has worked for some of the leading digital websites and broadcasters in India and overseas. An alumnus of the London School of Economics, Nikhil's forte is using data and numbers creatively to weave interesting stories and revolutionize the way cricket statistics are generated and analyzed.
