Virender Sehwag, a former Indian cricket player, has expressed his support for young batter Yashasvi Jaiswal, urging him to play across all three formats of the game. Jaiswal, a Test regular who opens the batting with KL Rahul, has faced challenges in securing a spot in India's white-ball teams. Despite his impressive performance in Tests, Jaiswal has struggled to find consistent opportunities in One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is).
Sehwag highlights the competitive nature of India's opening positions, noting that Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma currently occupy the top spots in ODIs, while Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson are favored in T20Is. With Jaiswal's background as an opener, Sehwag suggests that his chances are limited. However, he believes that Jaiswal's talent and potential make him a valuable asset to the team.
In his analysis, Sehwag emphasizes that Jaiswal's inclusion in the ODI team is often due to the unavailability of other players, rather than a lack of performance. He points out that Jaiswal's performance has been commendable when given the opportunity, and his inclusion is not a result of poor form. Sehwag also mentions Ishan Kishan as a contender for the ODI team, praising his exceptional double-century achievement in ODIs.
Sehwag's perspective is that Jaiswal should be given a chance to excel in all three formats. He believes that Jaiswal's versatility and skill set make him a valuable asset to the Indian cricket team, and his inclusion across formats could bring a fresh dynamic to the team's performance. This perspective adds a layer of complexity to the ongoing debate about player selection and team composition in international cricket.