‘If Root Bowls, No Hundred for Jaiswal’: Kevin Pietersen’s Pre-match Prediction Turns into Reality

Yashasvi Jaiswal was unable to convert his brilliant start against England on Day 2 of the first Test at Hyderabad. The batter was dismissed by the English part-time spinner, Joe Root. The interesting thing to note was that the former English skipper and batter, Kevin Pietersen suggested that his side go with Root to begin the proceedings well before the the match resumed.

Pietersen suggested that Root bowl first as he can get some turn off the track which has already shown to be a spin-friendly track since Day 1. During the pitch report, the former English international suggested that the spinners pull their lengths back slightly due to the variable bounce.

READ MORE: IND vs ENG 1st Test: Kevin Pietersen Shares ‘Big Concern’ for England After Day 1; ‘Didn’t See The Ball Spin Enough’ 

Jaiswal looked to continue where he left off and continue his aggressive intent. He smacked a boundary off the second delivery to get the first runs of the day. But Root came back strong with a tossed-up delivery which dipped a bit. Jaiswal looked to maintain his intensity but did not take into account the slight dip and went on to mistime the shot as the ball went straight towards Root to take the catch. During the pre-match show, Pietersen also predicted that if Root was to start the proceedings, then Jaiswal would not get the century and it is safe to say that prediction came true.

The young left-hander managed to put India well ahead in the first Test after a fantastic knock of 80 in just 74 deliveries which garnered a lot of praise for his aggressive stroke-play at the end of Day 1.

READ MORE: ‘We Saw Ashwin Trouble the Left-handers’: Anil Kumble Points Out The Trick England Missed Against Yashasvi Jaiswal 

However, Pietersen had also warned the young opening batter to remain wary and remain focused on the task at hand. He said to treat it as the start of another innings and take his time. But the aggressive approach by Jaiswal led to him missing out on a well-deserved century.

India however remains in front for the first Test with an aggressive approach taking the pressure off in terms of scoring runs. India managed to bring up 150 runs in just over 30 overs which goes to show that at this rate, India will be in the lead by the end of the day if they can keep their wickets.

Rohit Sharma’s men will be looking to maintain their streak at home for never losing a Test series at home which dates back to 2012 when England under Alastair Cook managed to last defeat the Indian side at home.