Yashasvi Jaiswal stood tall in a collapsing Indian innings to script a personal milestone in the second Test against South Africa in Guwahati. His composed 58 off 97 balls made him only the second Indian after Sachin Tendulkar to register 20 or more fifty-plus Test scores before turning 24 — a feat he reached despite the pressure of a mounting scoreboard and little support from the other end.
The achievement immediately placed him in elite company and ensured his name was mentioned alongside Tendulkar throughout the day. While the milestone is highlighted by the weight of the occasion, the full scale of Jaiswal’s accomplishment becomes clear when stacked against cricket’s global greats. Only a handful of players have ever posted 20 or more Test scores of fifty or above before the age of 24. Sachin Tendulkar leads the all-time list with 29, followed by Ramnaresh Sarwan (25), Alastair Cook (23), Javed Miandad (22) and Kane Williamson (20). Jaiswal’s entry into this select list reinforces his rapid rise in Test cricket and positions him among the finest young batters the format has seen. His knock unfolded in the middle of a South African onslaught after the visitors had piled up 489 runs in the first innings. Jaiswal and KL Rahul added 65 early on, but once Rahul was removed by Keshav Maharaj and Jaiswal followed to Simon Harmer, India crumbled dramatically. From 95/1, the scoreboard spiralled to 122/7, driven largely by Marco Jansen’s devastating six-wicket burst. Jansen finished with 6/48, which happens to be the third-best figures by a South African pacer in India and the fourth-best for a left-arm quick playing in India. Washington Sundar’s 48 and Kuldeep Yadav’s resistance offered brief relief but could not prevent India from being bowled out for 201. Jansen, who also scored 97 in South Africa’s first innings, completed a rare double of a fifty-plus score and a five-wicket haul in the same Test in India, becoming only the third visiting player to do so. South Africa chose not to enforce the follow-on and reached 26/0 at stumps, stretching their lead to 314 runs. Trailing 0-1 in the two-match series after the loss in Kolkata, India now face the prospect of a first home Test series defeat to South Africa since 2000-01. In a bleak scenario for the hosts, Jaiswal’s milestone stands out as the sole bright spark and as a reminder of his increasing maturity and rising stature in world cricket.
