India vs West Indies: Prithvi Shaw Is A Very Good Learner: Sachin Tendulkar

Sachin Tendulkar heaped praise on Prithvi Shaw after his fellow Mumbaikar scored a stunning century on his India debut against West Indies.

When it comes to impressing the world at a young age, there are very few who are even close to Sachin Tendulkar let along being better than him. Making his debut at just 16, Tendulkar scored his century at the age of 17.  He went on to become the most decorated batsman in the history of the game.

And now another Mumbaikar is showing the same signs. Prithvi Shaw, on Thursday, justified the hype surrounding him by slamming a scintillating ton on his Test debut. The 18-year old played a stroke-filled knock of 134 to light up Rajkot. Shaw looked unfazed on his debut, hitting a flurry of boundaries to showcase his immense potential.

He reached his hundred off just 99 balls. In doing so, Shaw became 15th Indian batsman to score a hundred on debut. Overall he is the 105th player to achieve the feat in Test cricket. The opener also became the fourth youngest player of all time to hit a debut ton and the second youngest Indian to make a Test century after Tendulkar.

Tendulkar feels the century on the debut has helped Shaw prove his credentials and announce his arrival at the world stage.

I’m sure it must be extremely relieving that he’s been able to get a big score in his first outing. A big question mark always is ‘a guy has done well at the domestic level, now will he be able to do the same at the international level?’ However talented the guy is, there is always a question mark. And a century kind of seals it. The figure is magical. Everyone starts thinking differently. As far as I am concerned, the first hurdle that he was going to encounter is out of the way now. It cements your spot in the team and help you announce to the world that you belong here,” he told The Times of India.

The legendary batsman further hailed Shaw for being a fast-learner in addition to praising him for adapting to conditions quickly.

“Whatever I have seen of him, he’s been a fast learner. To me, being talented is one thing but what you do with that talent becomes more important. If you want to succeed at the international level you’ve got to be a fast learner. And Prithvi is a very good learner. When somebody has to perform and sustain at this level, and play cricket at different grounds and conditions across the world for a long time to come, adaptability becomes the critical factor. I feel he has the knack to adapt to different situations and conditions. To me, that is Prithvi’s biggest strength,” he said.

Tendulkar also had a word of advise for the youngster, advising him to enjoy the game.

“Just go with the flow. Don’t calculate or think too much. Just enjoy your cricket. Every outing is a special outing. Every outing, you go out with a lot of pride. That’s what it was for me. I took a lot of pride in walking out on the field – be it for India or Mumbai or any club for that matter. Just give all the possible respect you can to the game,” he said.

Meanwhile, India finished the day on a commanding 364 for 4. Virat Kohli was unbeaten on 72 while giving him company was Rishabh Pant on 17.