IND vs SA: Yashasvi Jaiswal roars back to form with maiden ODI century as India close in on series triumph

India batter Yashasvi Jaiswal went on to score a fine hundred against South Africa in the third and final ODI of the series. The left-hander now has atleast one international century under his name across all the three formats. Only five other Indian batters have  been able to emulate the rare feat so far. 

Notably, he is also the fifth-youngest player to score a century across all the formats. The top 5 on the list is dominated by Indians with Shubman Gill and Suresh Raina also present.

Youngest players to score a century across all formats -

Brian Bennett (Zimbabwe) - 21y 324d
Ahmed Shahzad (Pakistan) - 22y 127d
Shubman Gill (India) - 23y 146d
Suresh Raina (India) - 23y 241d
Yashasvi Jaiswal (India) - 23y 343d

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After being given a rare opportunity in the playing XI for the series against South Africa, Jaiswal failed to deliver in the first two matches and got dismissed for scores of 18 and 22 respectively. However, he has stepped up big time in the final match and has taken the Men in Blue incredibly close to the victory.

Jaiswal's struggle for opportunities in white-ball cricket

This was only Jaiswal's fourth innings in ODIs for India. Though he has been a regular member of India's Test set-up for quite some time, he has struggled to be  picked regularly in white-ball cricket. He is yet to feature in a T20I for the Men in Blue since July, 2024 against Sri Lanka and hasn't been picked in the squad for the upcoming five-match series against South Africa.

However, this century may turn the tide for the 23-year-old and he may be given a long rope in ODIs as  he has the potential to go on to become a reliable opener for Team India in the format in the coming future. It remains to be seen if Jaiswal will be picked in India's home one-day assignment against New Zealand in January.

India record series victory

Meanwhile, India went on to defeat South Africa comprehensively by 9 wickets in the third ODI to clinch the series by 2-1. The run-chase of 271 was made easy by Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. While Jaiswal remained unbeaten on 116, Rohit played a valiant knock of 75 and Kohli remained unbeaten on 65.