Jaiswal aiming to keep wickets for Mumbai and India - Siddesh Lad

Why is Yashasvi Jaiswal attempting to keep wickets? The India debutant's glovework seems serious, at least to him. This revelation came from Mumbai Ranji skipper Siddesh Lad, with Jaiswal even posting a picture of himself wearing wicketkeeping gloves on his social media account.

“With Yashasvi, I believe he is making a concerted effort to begin taking wickets. That’s what I heard from him. He wants to keep wickets either for Mumbai or for the Indian team. He wants to achieve that. During a pre-season interaction on Thursday, veteran Mumbai batter Lad, who is leading the team this season, stated, "I haven't got any clarity on that."

Jaiswal, a regular opener for India in Tests, has struggled to make the white-ball team, whether for T20Is or One-Day Internationals. He won't be in the ODI squad because Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma are at the top. Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson will open the innings in T20Is, with Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, a teen prodigy, waiting in the wings.

“Perhaps he wants to enhance his core strength, batting. He kept wickets in one of our practice matches. I don’t have any idea what his plans are but adding a new dimension to your core cricketing skills is not bad. Who knows when or where a chance might present itself. After speaking with the media, Lad said, "He does batting, and keeping can add value to his cricket."

The Mumbai captain reflected on the pressure of being a powerhouse in domestic cricket and the need to embrace it rather than run away from it. “Given Mumbai’s rich history, the 42 Ranji Trophy titles we have won and the legacy of players who have represented the team, there will always be pressure when you wear the Mumbai jersey. However, as a group, we prefer to accept that pressure rather than resist it. We understand the history and culture that come with representing Mumbai, and we are looking forward to the season,” Lad said.

At the press conference, Lad was joined by Mumbai vice-captain Ayush Mhatre, who said that MS Dhoni at Chennai Super Kings taught him valuable leadership and captaincy lessons. Mhatre is an opener for the Chennai franchise and led India at the Under-19 World Cup.

“He always tells me that you should be calm on the field, and some decisions we take in aggressive mode are not the right decisions to take. We will be in the aggressive mode for only five minutes. Therefore, conduct yourself calmly on the field and make decisions calmly. Therefore, you will benefit from it. Therefore, it also assisted me during the World Cup. So I just try to be calm on the field,” the youngster said.

On October 11, Mumbai hosts Chandigarh in their season opener at the Wankhede.