'I respect everyone, but I want to be a Yashasvi Jaiswal' - Yashasvi Jaiswal on comparison with cricket legends

On the eve of the third Test against England at Rajkot, starting on Thursday, India opener and the double-centurion of the previous match, Yashasvi Jaiswal, spoke exclusively to JioCinema on a range of topics. Excerpts:

On Shubman Gill’s praise after his double ton: “I enjoy a lot with Shubman bhai. We talk to each other a lot. We speak about cricket, friendship, and life in general. He is my senior and he gives me good advice. He has the experience, he has been playing for India for a while. It’s just wonderful for me to have him around and I am really having a good time with him.”

On whether he has an open license to go out and express himself while batting: “The team management gives me freedom to go and play my shots, enjoy and express myself. But along with that, I have my responsibilities about how I need to play and how I need to build my innings.”

On his relationship with Rohit Sharma: “It’s an honour and pleasure to play with him. Walking out with him to the middle, sharing experiences, and enjoying the tough times with him has been nice. There’s a lot I am learning from him. It’s really comfortable going up to him and asking a question. Even if the question is bad, he still gives good advice. Sometimes when you have a lot of questions in your mind, going up to him and getting his advice is really nice.”

On whether he’s also interested in bowling: “I really enjoy bowling. Whenever I get opportunities, during practice, after practice, I always bowl. So hopefully my time will come and I will be able to bowl well.”

On the comparisons to legends like Virender Sehwag and Sourav Ganguly: “I respect everyone, but I want to be a Yashasvi Jaiswal, always wanted to be a Yashasvi Jaiswal.”