Indian wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan celebrated his 26th birthday in a spiritual way at Shree Samadhi Mandir in Shirdi, Maharashtra. Having taken Sai Baba’s blessings, Kishan shared the photos of his visit on social media, reflecting on his year that has been full of many ups and downs. But still, through all perils, Ishan remains one of the most promising young talents in Indian cricket.
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Ishan Kishan is currently holding the world record for the fastest double century in the format of ODIs and many more staggering performances done for the team. However, Kishan’s journey throughout the year had not been smooth, though. He was visibly excluded from the BCCI annual contract list, announced along with Shreyas Iyer.
While he was included in the squad for South Africa in all formats, he opted out of the series with immediate succession, citing personal reasons, which further extended to not being available for the Afghanistan series, as he had not given any assurance about his availability. Other than that, Kishan had opted not to play Ranji matches, despite not being in the Indian squad.
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Kishan last played for India during the five-match T20I series against Australia last month, where he scored a half-century. Rahul Dravid, who was then the head coach of the senior team, laid great emphasis on having one undergo domestic cricket to get a national call-up.
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The aftereffects were such that Kishan was not named in the annual contract list of the BCCI. He performed poorly in the IPL as well, where he scored 320 runs in 14 matches at an average of 22.86 and a strike rate of 148.84. It has to be a really tough route for Kishan if he is now embarking upon making a re-entry and coming back in great style in the Indian team.
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With one of the most competitive white-ball set-ups at the moment, it will be tough to assure himself of a place in the XI. Kishan’s saga mirrors the precarious balance between personal choices and professional commitment in a cricketer’s career. Now, as he looks towards re-establishing himself with this opportunity, fans and selectors alike wait with bated breath to see this promising young cricketer making his way back to the top.