‘He was playing shots and defending very well’: Yashasvi Jaiswal lauds Akash Deep after their 100+ stand in Oval Test

LONDON: India’s star opener Yashasvi Jaiswal heaped praise on Akash Deep following their crucial partnership in the fifth and final Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy against England at The Oval on Saturday.

The duo added 107 runs for the third wicket on Day 3 in the series decider. This partnership was the 18th 100-run stand in this ongoing England tour, the most in a Test series in this century (since 2000), surpassing 17 in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in 2003-04.

The partnership between Jaiswal-Deep was a turning point in India’s second innings as they lost KL Rahul and Sai Sudharsan for low scores on Day 2.

“He did what he could, and he was playing shots and defending very well. We were just having a talk in the middle about what we can do best in that situation because we wanted him to play as long as he can play. So, that will benefit us as well. So, I was just keeping thinking about how we can build this partnership as long as we can,” Jaiswal told the media.

Deep walked as a night watchman in the third session of the fifth and final Test on Day 2 and went on to make the most of a reprieve and score a gritty half-century. This was his maiden fifty in Test cricket.

With his first fifty in the longest format, he became just the fourth Indian to score a Test fifty at No.4 in England in this century, joining the legendary Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli and Indian skipper Shubman Gill.

On the other hand, Jaiswal delivered a batting masterclass and completed his second century of the ongoing series in 127 deliveries by pushing the ball for a single off Gus Atkinson.

Jaiswal’s innings ended after he played an upper cut straight to the third man fielder, placed for that particular shot, for 118 runs off 164 balls. (ANI)