Ishan Kishan's central contract to be restored? Massive update arrives from Mumbai Indians' camp after their IPL 2024 opener

The Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) honorable secretary Jay Shah appeared to have a light-hearted and lengthy chat with outcast left-hand batter Ishan Kishan. The unexpected moment occurred right after the Gujarat Titans defeated the Hardik Pandya-led Mumbai Indians by 6 runs at the Narendra Modi stadium last night. It was a homecoming for Pandya who was welcomed back with loud and non-stop jeers and boos from the Ahmedabad crowd.

While that was a moment all of us were waiting to see (Pandya’s return to Gujarat) an out-of-the-blue moment unfurled when Jay Shah walked up to Ishan Kishan for a chat. Pandya, GT captain Shubman Gill, and Kishan were standing together and were having a conversation about something as they were waiting for the post-match presentation ceremony.

As the trio were laughing at something, Jay Shah, the one who runs the BCCI at the moment, walked up to them and pulled Ishan Kishan to the other side. Shah had his left arm over the shoulder of Kishan and the BCCI official was caught saying something to the batter on camera.

Why is the chat between Jay Shah and Ishan Kishan, a trending topic

Every Indian cricket fan knows why the chat between Jay Shah and Ishan Kishan was so important and why it is trending all across social media platforms. The duo share a bit of a history not directly but just like an employer boss and his fellow employee.

Their relationship is neither spiteful nor very good and there is no bad blood between them either. The reason for this conversation’s importance is that Ishan Kishan was recently overlooked from the BCCI annual player retainership list for 2024, something that is directed by the chief selectors, team management, and Jay Shah himself.

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Before the central contract list came out, Kishan was sent back home from the red-ball phase of India’s tour of South Africa in December-January as the batter cited Mental health reasons. He was later seen partying in Dubai for his brother’s birthday party. Then upon his return, Jharkhand was playing their group stage Ranji Trophy 2024 matches but Kishan kept himself out of it.

Then a leaked audio clip of Jay Shah came out where he claimed that players had no choice but to play Ranji Trophy cricket to get selected for the national team. Shah was also heard talking about players facing consequences for not appearing in the domestic circuit.

The consequence was later exercised by Shah when Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan – both sharing the same issue, were not recommended for this year’s player retainership. So when Jay Shah approached Kishan for a chat, the topic started to trend on social media with fans trying to decode what was it all about.

Is Ishan Kishan getting the central contract back?

While many are claiming that Jay Shah was asking Ishan Kishan to cheer up, work hard, and earn the central contract again, others feel that Kishan was trying to convince Shah to give him another chance. Either way, it will be Kishan’s benefit and whether he can land a central contract or not, is something that time will tell.