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Team India skipper Rohit Sharma revealed that he gave a hint to Ishan Kishan about the team’s declaration plans because he wanted the Test debutant to get his first runs on the board.
Responding to West Indies’ first-innings total of 150, India declared their innings on 421/5 on Day 3 of the Dominica Test against West Indies on Friday.
Kishan, who came into bat at No. 7, faced 19 balls without scoring before getting off the mark in Test cricket on the 20th ball. There were some questions being asked about India not pressing the accelerator despite being in command. The visitors declared immediately after Kishan scored his first Test run.
Speaking after India’s thumping win by an innings and 141 runs in the first Test, Rohit opened up on waiting for Kishan to get his first run before declaring.
"I was just letting them [batters] know that we probably have an over or so and then we're declaring. I just wanted Ishan to get off the mark, because he had probably played close to 15-20 balls without getting off the mark, so I wanted to tell him, get your first runs in Test cricket and then we have to declare," the Indian skipper said.
"I can understand, playing your first Test match, you have a lot of nerves going around, and I could see, he was sitting there in the dressing room, entire [second] day, wanting to go out to bat, so I know the feeling, but I was just letting him know that we probably have an over or two and then we're going to declare," he added.
While Kishan did not have much to do with the bat, he was impressive behind the stumps. The keeper took two good catches and was heard constantly encouraging the players.
“He's shown us in the past couple of years that he's ready for this big stage” - Rohit on Jaiswal
India’s other debutant of the match, Yashasvi Jaiswal, walked away with the Player of the Match award for his terrific 171. Jaiswal faced 387 balls and batted for 501 minutes, making a memorable start to his Test career.
Hailing the youngster, Rohit said:
"He's got the talent. We knew about it. He's shown us in the past couple of years that he's ready for this big stage. Came and batted sensibly, showed a lot of patience, and the temperament was tested as well - at no stage [did it look] like he was panicking or going away from his plans, which was good to see."
On the bowling front, off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin stood tall, claiming match figures of 12 for 131, literally bulldozing the West Indies batters. Ravindra Jadeja also chipped in with crucial scalps.
Praising the spin duo, Rohit commented:
"Both of these guys have been doing it for a while for us now. They know exactly what is expected out of them. There's not much to tell them [about] what we need to do. It's just about going to them and giving them that freedom to go and express, because that is when they're doing their best for the side as well.”
While Ashwin was the wrecker-in-chief, Jadeja claimed three wickets in the first innings and two in the second.
