Ishan Kishan played a key role in India's T20 World Cup title defence.
One of the key members of India’s T20 World Cup 2026 winning squad, Ishan Kishan received a rousing welcome upon his arrival in Patna on Tuesday (March 10).
Fans gathered in large numbers to catch a glimpse of the wicketkeeper-batter, who also spoke to the media after walking out of the airport.
However, Kishan got frustrated when he was asked about former cricketer Kirti Azad’s comments on taking the T20 World Cup trophy to a temple post victory.
“Itna acha World Cup jeete hain, kitna acha saawal aap log kijye ga, yeh Kirti Azad kya bole isme main kya bolu. (We won such a nice World Cup, expect good questions from you guys. What should I say about Kirti Azad’s comments)," Kishan said.
He continued, urging the reporters to ask more relevant questions, “Acha sawal kijye, kaisa maja aaya (Ask better questions, such as how much did we enjoyed)."
When another journalist interrupted to ask how much he enjoyed the victory, the southpaw replied, “Yeh acha question hua, bekar question puch liye aap (This is a good question, you asked a useless question)."
Ishan Kishan finished the T20 World Cup as the fourth-highest run-getter, piling up 317 runs in nine innings at an incredible strike rate of 193.29 with three half-centuries. He stepped up in the title clash as well, smashing 54 off 25 balls against New Zealand at Ahmedabad.
Earlier, Kirti Azad stirred a controversy by questioning why the T20 World Cup trophy was taken to a temple while also adding that the silverware belongs to 1.4 billion Indians of every faith.
“SHAME ON TEAM INDIA! When we won the World Cup under Kapil Dev in 1983, we had Hindu, Sikhs, and Christians in the team. We brought the trophy to our religious birthplace, our motherland India, Bharat, Hindustan," Kirti’s X post read.
“Why The Hell Is The Indian Cricket Trophy is being Dragged. Why NOT a Mosque? Why NOT a Church? Why NOT a Gurudwara? This Team Represents INDIA — not Surya Kumar Yadav's or Jay Shah's Family !
“Siraj never paraded it at a Mosque. Sanju never took it to a Church. latter had a major part to play and was man of the tournament.
“The Trophy Belongs to 1.4 BILLION Indians of EVERY Faith — NOT ONE RELIGION'S VICTORY LAP!” the post added.
India's T20 World Cup campaign was nearly flawless as they lost only one match en route to winning their third title. They defeated USA, Namibia, Pakistan and Netherlands in the group stage, before losing to South Africa in the Super 8s.
However, the Suryakumar Yadav-led side bounced back brilliantly and outclassed Zimbabwe, West Indies, England and New Zealand in the remainder of the tournament to lift the coveted trophy.