Ishan Kishan 2.0: From Searching For Answers To Onslaught In Raipur

Dewy conditions, a perfect strip to bat on, and a Kiwi onslaught made the Raipur T20I look like a prime comeback opportunity for New Zealand on Friday night. In fact, the quick dismissals of Indian openers Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson while chasing 209 painted a grim picture. And just when clouds of uncertainty began enveloping the Indian camp, Ishan Kishan caused a typhoon that swept it all away.

From 6 for 2 in the second over to 75 for 2 at the end of the Powerplay, the scoreboard raced ahead at lightning speed as Kishan toyed with the Black Caps attack. He provided the godly push to the Indian innings in the Powerplay before captain Suryakumar Yadav roared back to form and sealed the victory with an unbeaten 82.

“I was focusing more on

what I had to do today and being in a very good headspace for this game. Sometimes you understand that you’re batting well. I just needed to get runs somewhere to answer my questions. Even if I got out, I just wanted to play good cricket, that was it,” Kishan said after bagging the Player of the Match award.

That “very good headspace” did not come easy. Kishan had been out of India’s scheme of things since December 2023. Even a month ago, when the Men in Blue defeated South Africa in a five-match series, he was far away from the Indian dressing room, leading Jharkhand in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

Few could have predicted back then whether Kishan would be part of India’s World Cup plans.

If one heads back a couple of years, Kishan’s journey took a deeply personal turn in 2024. According to The Times of India, a quiet moment in December pushed him in an unexpected direction. While idly scrolling through his phone, the wicketkeeper-batter paused at a line from the Bhagavad Gita that stayed with him long after he read it.

Curious, he rang up his father, who explained its meaning and recited a few shlokas. That conversation lingered. Soon after, Kishan ordered a copy of the Bhagavad Gita, which has since become part of his daily routine as well as the kit bag.

Exactly a year later, he was back in the headlines for his exploits as Jharkhand captain in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. It was a season to remember: 517 runs, a match-winning hundred against Haryana in the final, and the trophy in the cabinet. The volume of achievements was hard to ignore, even for the selectors who, to everyone’s surprise, dropped Shubman Gill at the eleventh hour and called up Kishan.

While away from the national setup, Kishan was searching for answers. The Bhagavad Gita channelled that restlessness into discipline and hard work, which eventually reflected in the domestic grind. And then, the Raipur typhoon happened.

“I asked myself one question about my comeback, can I do it again or not? And I had a very clear answer,” Kishan said. “I was just looking to score runs. Sometimes it’s important to do it for yourself, to answer your own questions about how you’re batting and whether you’re capable of playing for India. That’s why it was important for me to play domestic cricket and get runs.”

“The good part was that we won the trophy as well, and I carried that confidence here. So, it was a pretty good day for me,” he added.

‘Best Left-Hand Batter’

Shivam Dube, who played a key role in India’s terrific win in Raipur, heaped massive praise on his teammate, terming Kishan as one of the ‘best left-hand batters’ he has ever seen.

“Ishan is one of the best left-handers I have seen,” Dube said while addressing the post-match press conference.

“He is literally a small pocket blast. His batting is phenomenal. He simply replicated what he has been doing in the domestic circuit. Though he got out early in the last match, he is aware of his capabilities, which he showcased today. We really enjoyed watching him a lot,” he added.

Will Kishan Be Promoted Up The Order?

Gill’s exit from the T20 World Cup squad paved the way for both wicketkeepers – Sanju Samson and Kishan – to move up the order.

Samson was back in the opening slot while Suryakumar Yadav is letting Kishan play at his favourable no. 3 spot. But Samson is yet to blaze away like he did last year.

As a Samson classic is yet to come in this series, the possibilities of Kishan moving up the pecking order cannot be overlooked. The Patna boy has scored more than half of his runs in T20Is, 662, batting as an opener, which also includes 4 fifties.

On the other hand, Samson has expressed himself the most as an opener, scoring 575 runs out of his 1048 T20I runs. The only parameter of comparison between them as openers is that Samson has struck all his 3 centuries as a no. 1 batter, while Kishan is yet to notch triple figures in T20Is