Yashasvi Jaiswal once again showed why he is the most vital cog in India’s new brand of T20 batting. The southpaw smoked a 34-ball 68, which not only set the tone for India but also helped the team chased down Afghanistan total with 26 balls to spare and take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series

The southpaw revealed the role he has been given by the team and what he tries to achieve, while he is in the middle.

“I have been told to go and express myself and try to do what I do. I keep working hard on my practice session on my process. When I get the chance I try my best and make sure that I am doing things for the team which is important and I am just trying to show my intent,” Jaiswal told reporters after the match.

Jaiswal, who missed the opening match in Mohali due to sore groin said: “I was trying to punish the loose balls, and was focused to give my team a good start. I was trying to bat as deep as I can. I was trying to keep my strike rate good. I wanted to keep batting with a good strike rate.”

It was Jaiswal’s 92-run stand for the third wicket Shivam Dube, which steered India close to the victory. By the time Jaiswal was out for 68 off 34, India needed only 19 off 45 balls. However, Jaiswal thanked Virat Kohli, who scored a quickfire 29 off 16 balls, for small chats during their second wicket partnership of 57 runs in 28 balls.

“I think It was really nice. Whenever I bat with Virat bhaiya, it’s an honour. Lots of things to learn like when we were batting, we had small chats where we can hit the boundaries. We decided that it was easy to hit over the long on and mid off. The intent was there and the positive vibes were there and we were just trying to hit good shots,” he said.

The final match of the series will be played in Bengaluru on Wednesday.