After India registered a comfortable 43-run win over Sri Lanka in the first T20I of the three-match series, Ashish Nehra trolled Yashasvi Jaiswal with a hilarious comment during their post-match chat. The 45-year-old remarked that if Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma were still a part of India’s T20I team, then Yashasvi Jaiswal would have had to play his expansive strokes in the nets.
Notably, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, who opened the batting for India during their T20 World Cup 2024 triumph, announced their retirement from the format shortly afterwards. With these two stalwarts taking up the opening slots in the ICC tournament, Yashasvi Jaiswal, who was in the Indian squad, had to warm the bench during his one month stay in the USA and the Caribbean.
During the first T20I of the three-match series against Sri Lanka, Yashasvi Jaiswal batted at the top of the order alongside Shubman Gill, getting off to a flyer in the powerplay stage with his 40 off 21, which included five fours and two maximums. The scintillating stroke play from the left-handed batter helped set up a massive total of 213/7 for India, which they defended successfully by bundling out Sri Lanka for 170 in the last over.
In the post-match show for Sony Sports Network, Ashish Nehra said to Yashasvi Jaiswal, as per Times of India, “Ajay Jadeja asked you what’s the difference when Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma were there (to open in T20Is). According to me, there is just one difference. If Virat and Rohit were still playing this format, then whatever strokes we saw from you today, you would have played those in the nets. Now you are getting to play those shots in the match because they (Virat and Rohit) are not there.”
India will be playing the second T20I of the three-match series against Sri Lanka on Sunday, July 28, at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Pallekele.