Sunday offered fanatics of the Indian Premier League (IPL) two thrillers as both matches were won by the teams chasing a score, in the last over. There were some exceptional individual performances on display in both those games, but one performance in the lot stood out.
Those who have followed Indian cricket in the last few years will be aware that Yashasvi Jaiswal could bat. He had the shots, he had the elegance, he had the aggression. But on Sunday night against Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede stadium, the left-hander did one other thing: he made everyone sit up and take notice.
The southpaw made 124 runs in 62 balls- his first-ever IPL hundred- in an innings that contained 16 fours and eight sixes. In the process, he broke the record for the highest individual score made by an uncapped player in IPL history.
The journey to becoming one of the best young batters in the IPL has been a tough one for Jaiswal. To make ends meet, he has resorted to selling pani puri when he was younger and even had to make his own food.
"During Ram Leela, I earned well. I prayed that my teammates would not come there for pani-puri. Sometimes they did and I would feel bad serving them," Jaiswal told Indian Express in an interview in 2018.
"I always used to see boys my age bringing food or their parents had big lunches with them. As for me, it was — khana khud banao, khud khao. (make your own food, eat alone). No breakfast. Catch hold of anyone around and request them to buy breakfast," he added.
Jaiswal was bought by the Rajasthan Royals during the 2019 auctions for a sum of Rs 2.4 crore. Nearly four years later, he now seems to have found a home at the franchise and heading into the crunch phase of the competition, will hope to put in similar performances with the bat.
Also read: IPL 2023: Yashasvi Jaiswal, spinners guide RR to 32-run win over CSK
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