Watch: Ishan Kishan showcases flop performance on competitive cricket return

Published - 27 Feb 2024, 09:06 PM

Ishan Kishan makes return
Ishan Kishan makes return [PC: X/Twitter]

Indian wicket-keeper batsman Ishan Kishan displayed a flop performance on his return to competitive cricket and got out for 19 runs from 12 balls. Ishan has been out of action from the cricket field since November 2023 and pulled out from the IND vs SA Test series, IND vs AFG T20I series, and the IND vs ENG Test series due to mental fatigue. Kishan is playing for the Reserve Bank of India in the DY Patil T20 Cup 2024 against Route Mobile Limited.

Chasing down 193 runs against Route Mobile Limited, Ishan Kishan wasn’t able to continue his start and got dismissed to Maxwell Swaminathan after hitting two fours and one six. The RBI squad consisted of the likes of big names such as Shahbaz Nadeem, Amit Mishra, Ankit Rajpoot, Dhruv Shorey, and Riyan Parag. Kishan added significant value to the team’s combination.

His last appearance for India was in a T20I against Australia in November 2023. Following that, Kishan withdrew from India’s tour of South Africa, claiming mental health problems, sparking debate on the importance of mental health in sports.

After BCCI made it mandatory for Indian cricketers to play domestic cricket who have been away from the field due to unnecessary reasons. Ishan was supposed to return to play for Jharkhand in the Ranji Trophy on February 15, 2024, however, due to mental stiffness the wicketkeeper-batsman didn’t do so.

Ishan Kishan was part of India’s ODI World Cup 2023 squad but only played a few matches of the tournament. Kishan later represented India in the T20I series against Australia and played some decent knocks. He was picked for the Test series against South Africa but asked to remove his name from the squad.

Watch – Ishan Kishan’s batting on competitive cricket return

https://twitter.com/ishanb4everr/status/1762462821831643437?t=BYKwNgPB9ZUXXpdVmOV5aA&s=19

Ishan has faced criticism for his extended hiatus from cricket, despite the fact that he was not injured. He was persuaded to play in the Ranji Trophy but declined, garnering an oblique censure from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and Indian team captain Rohit Sharma.

Indian head coach Rahul Dravid while speaking in the press conference ahead of the T20I series against Afghanistan stated that Ishan Kishan had asked for a break and stated that he would play when he is available for selection. Dravid had said, “Ishan requested for a break, which we agreed in South Africa. We supported it. He has not yet made himself available. When he is available, he will play domestic cricket and make himself available for selection.”

Apart from Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer is also one such cricketer who has taken his name back from the Ranji Trophy after being excluded from the Indian squad. With Kishan and Shreyas Iyer missing Ranji Trophy matches despite being fit, BCCI secretary Jay Shah chastised centrally contracted players for avoiding domestic cricket games.

Jay Shah had said, “They (players) have been informed on phone already and I’m going to write letters as well that if your chairman of selectors, your coach and your captain are asking for it then you will have to play red-ball cricket.”

Ishan Kishan was seen practicing with Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya in Vadodara during his break from international cricket.

Tagged:

DY Patil T20 Cup India India National Cricket Team Ishan Kishan