Former India all-rounder Suresh Raina backed left-handed opener Yashasvi Jaiswal for inclusion in the Rohit Sharma-led squad for the next ICC Champions Trophy. Raina credited captain Rohit for keeping Jaiswal in the squad despite the fact that this left-handed opening batsman has not played a single ODI till now. The 23-year-old enjoyed impressive form last year in Tests and T20Is for India, and was also in the list of best players in the ICC Men’s Test Team of the Year. “I think that boy is really hungry for runs
. I mean, whenever we see his story, he has come to the level of the great ones very easily. I salute the selectors and most of all, Rohit Sharma. The boy is going to the Champions Trophy without being an ODI player. You know he works hard; dedication is very good. Only that one way of how he desires, in the eyes of a different student, has patience, is different. This boy seems to have come prepared.”
“In Indian cricket, if you work really hard and have the passion to represent your country, there is something in you that powers you to do your job,” Raina said to Star Sports.
The batsman insisted that Kohli’s mindset is different going into the tournament: “The sort of mindset he brings is entirely different. He is definitely, I think, a good teammate to have in a dressing room.” But he needs to be always on the switch. In practice, he has a different sort of preparation; while doing fielding, he channels everything he can, and if the chips are down, he will be one of the first to come and say, ‘Let’s fight; let’s field.”
“Fielding with him was a great experience because his passion is different; when he is in the mood for fielding and diving, it changes everybody’s attitude. Virat, he has that talent; he is different in North India; we can’t bear to lose. We don’t know how to lose. We won’t leave until we die. That’s the kind of attitude he has,” he said.
Kohli will be available for Delhi’s next Ranji Trophy clash starting January 30 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium against Railways, marking his return to the tournament for the first time since 2012.
