Ishan Kishan, the wicket-keeper batter has been in the news for the past year or so. Kishan was removed from the BCCI’s Central contract after he ignored BCCI’s repeated directives to prioritize domestic cricket. Despite the notifications from the BCCI during the previous domestic season (2023-24), Kishan chose not to play for his state side in the Ranji Trophy and was seen training in Mumbai along with some of his mates.
The batter from Jharkhand as a result was excluded from the Central contracts, which became the headlines, and rightly so, as it was the first big step by the BCCI towards players not prioritizing domestic cricket. Kishan who then returned to competitive cricket during the IPL had a decent season with the Mumbai Indians, however, it was unlikely that the keeper would get a spot in India’s T20 World Cup squad. As predicted Ishan missed out on the World Cup with Rishab Pant and Sanju Samson being preferred ahead of him.
Seeking to regain his contract and find a way back to the National side, Kishan was finally back playing domestic cricket, as he led Jharkhand in the TNCA Buchi Babu red-ball tournament last month. He started off in the best of fashion, scoring a century on his return against Madhya Pradesh. He followed the innings with a superb match-winning 40-odd runs in the 4th innings of the game, taking Jharkhand over the line.
The second game against Hyderabad didn’t go well for him, as he failed to score runs and even, reportedly picked up a groin injury which ultimately forced him out of the first game of the Duleep Trophy.
Though Ishan was back playing for his state side, he featured in the Buchi Babu trophy, which is a state-level tournament and does not come under the BCCI, hence the Duleep Trophy was important when it comes to his return. His absence from the first game of the Duleep Trophy, where he was a part of the India D squad, again ignited the fire and made him the headlines.
Surprisingly, Kishan was included in the India C squad just ahead of the 2nd game of the Duleep Trophy. This came as a shock to everyone, as he wasn’t a part of any of the squads announced for the second round, and was added just before the game. However, he did not let himself and his fans down scoring a blistering 111 off a mere 126 deliveries against India B, making a strong statement.
The last year has been difficult for the young keeper-batter from Jharkhand. He has been under scrutiny but has not failed to prove himself whenever given an opportunity. One game of Duleep Trophy still remains and Kishan would be looking to make it big once again and put forward his case for the India reckoning. India is scheduled to play Bangladesh in 3 T20Is next month and with Shubman Gill set to be rested from the series, it would be the best bet for Ishan to mark his return to international cricket.
Will he make it to the squad would be the thing to watch out for all the cricketing freaks in the coming days.
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