Jaiswal nears double hundred as India reach 318-2 against WI

Yashasvi Jaiswal continued his ascent in international cricket arena with a commanding unbeaten 173, while B Sai Sudharsan kept his critics at bay by making a fine 87 as India posted 318/2 in 90 overs at stumps on day one of the second and final Test against West Indies at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Friday.

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From the time captain Shubman Gill won his first toss as India’s Test skipper and chose to bat on a slow pitch on a bright day with 1,000 spectators in attendance, everything went India’s way.

Jaiswal and KL Rahul put on a steady 58-run stand before the former was involved in a huge 193-run partnership with Sudharsan, who hit his first Test fifty in India.

Jaiswal shifted gears post-lunch to bring up his hundred with flair in a knock where he started watchfully, feasted only on bad balls, and then got runs effortlessly. The final session saw a slowdown in scoring rate, but India remained in control. Jaiswal crossed 150 for the fifth time in his young Test career, and looks set for garnering more runs on day two, with skipper Gill also looking solid while slog-sweeping his way to 20 not out.

The standout aspect of the day, though, was Jaiswal's knock being as a masterclass in tempo control as an opening batter. He absorbed pressure early, capitalised on loose deliveries in the middle session and tightened up again when West Indies regained discipline late in the day.