Why Michael Vaughan Believes Yashasvi Jaiswal Could’ve Replaced KL Rahul in Indian Squad for ICC World Test Championship Final

Former England cricket captain Michael Vaughan has expressed his opinion on social media that Yashasvi Jaiswal should have been selected for the Indian squad for the ICC World Test Championship final against Australia next month. The original 15-member squad was announced last month, but with batter, KL Rahul ruled out due to an injury sustained during the ongoing Indian Premier League 2023, there was scope for a late change.

While uncapped wicketkeeper batter Ishan Kishan was named as Rahul’s replacement earlier this week, Vaughan believes that Jaiswal’s current form would have made him a better choice. Vaughan’s tweet came in the wake of the left-handed batter scoring the fastest IPL half-century against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens, where his unbeaten 98 off 47 balls helped Rajasthan Royals secure a 150-run chase in just 13.1 overs.

While Jaiswal’s recent heroics have come in the T20 format, he has an equally formidable record in other formats of cricket as well. His first-class and List A averages of 80.21 and 53.96, respectively, make him a prototypical all-format prospect for India.

Yashasvi Jaiswal has already been receiving praise from the Indian cricket fraternity for his exceptional batting skills

But unlike Rahul and Kishan, Jaiswal was unable to keep wickets, thus he wasn’t in the running for a first Test call-up at the moment. After the conclusion of IPL 2023, India will visit Ireland and the West Indies, hence Jaiswal may soon get a national call-up.

I would have selected @ybj_19 as KL Rahuls replacement for the World Test championship final … He is that good .. he is going to be a superstar .. #India

— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) May 11, 2023

Even though he is currently not a part of the Test squad, Jaiswal has already been receiving praise from the Indian cricket fraternity for his exceptional batting skills. India and Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma expressed his admiration for Jaiswal’s six-hitting ability, while former India and Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Virat Kohli uploaded an Instagram story to laud his “talent”.

It is worth noting that the Indian cricket team management may have already had its own reasons for not selecting Jaiswal for the Test squad. However, Vaughan’s opinion on the matter holds weight, given his cricketing experience and knowledge of the game.

As the Indian cricket team prepares for the crucial Test championship final against Australia, it remains to be seen whether they will regret not including Jaiswal in their squad.

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