Ahead of their second Test against South Africa at Cape Town, India skipper Rohit Sharma came out and stated that youngsters in the team such as the likes of opener Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill. Shreyas Iyer and Prasidh Krishna will simply have to find a way to cope with South Africa’s “challenging” conditions.
Both Jaiswal and Gill were left dumbfounded for the most part as the Protean pacers made light work of both batters, not allowing either batter to register a menacing score across both innings of the first Test.
Shreyas Iyer, who has had prior experience playing at South Africa, also failed to emulate a respectable outing during the first Test, falling victim to Marco Jansen and Kagiso Rabada’s menacing pace.
“Whatever is in front of us, we have to accept it, whether it is 2 or 5 Test matches. We have to go out, play and play well,” said Rohit Sharma at a pre-match presser.
“Yes, these three guys haven’t played a lot of cricket. But, they have been around the team for a number of years now. If you perform well in these conditions against these kinds of teams, you can take your game to another level. It gives you a lot of confidence moving ahead in your career.
“At some point they have to be exposed to conditions like this, opposition like this, travelling abroad, performing at some stage, they have to do it. We all have done it.”
Rohit Sharma, who himself only made five and zero with the bat in the first Test, said that the young batters would have benefitted from the first game.
“I am sure they have learned a lot from the first game, and again, tomorrow will be another opportunity for them to understand what is required to play in these conditions. It is challenging and that’s what Test cricket is all about,” exclaimed Rohit Sharma.
Rohit also then talked about the difficulties that debutant Prasidh Krishna faced with the ball as he managed to nab only a solitary wicket but leaked runs. The Indian skipper hinted at the possibility of the pacer getting another chance to prove his mettle, despite his nervy first outing against the Proteas.
“I still feel that sometimes we have got a little bit of inexperience in our bowling and sometimes when you have that, you have got to show some faith in them…Like I said in the last post-match conference about Prasidh plating his first game, we all get nervous when playing our first game. It’s understandable.
“He’s got a good ability to succeed at this level and especially in this format. So, it’s just about putting your faith and trust in them to get the job done,” added Rohit.
India will face off against South Africa in the second Test of their two-match series on January 3, as they look to level the scores and deprive the hosts of yet another series win in Protean soil.
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