Ishan Kishan starred with the bat in India’s consolation 227-run victory over Bangladesh in the third ODI at Chattogram on Saturday (December 10).
The southpaw came into the side after skipper Rohit Sharma got ruled out of the final ODI with a thumb injury and he grabbed the opportunity with both hands.
Opening the innings, Kishan batted aggressively right from the word go to put the opposition bowlers under pressure. The 24-year-old slammed his maiden ODI century in 85 balls and went on to make a daddy hundred (210 off 131 balls) before being dismissed.
After the game, Ishan Kishan acknowledged the level of competition for spots in the Indian team and hence he isn’t complaining about his batting slot.
In the past, the left-hander has batted one down and in the middle-order as well. Despite this mesmerizing knock, Kishan can’t be certain about his place in the playing XI as Rohit is likely to be fit when India next play Sri Lanka in January while Shikhar Dhawan will be around if not dropped and Shubman Gill will also be back in the mix.
“Batting position I don’t think in this team is certain. Many big players are playing in different positions. It’s all about performance and I can’t complain that I want to bat in this position,” Kishan said in the post-match press conference.
“It is such an opportunity, if you get, you need to score big because you will get just one or two matches to show your potential. A big player emerges like this only, he cashes on the opportunity which he gets.”
Kishan isn’t concerned whether he will get a chance to play or not against Sri Lanka next month.
“I don’t think about whether I will play the next match or not. My job is to give my best when I get an opportunity. I don’t talk much, I just want my bat to do the talking.”
Ishan Kishan looks up to Virat Kohli and Hardik Pandya when it comes to commitment.
“When I look at Virat bhai or Hardik bhai I just try to look at their commitment and give my 100 percent just the way they do. It’s not that we are playing any league match. We are representing our country. My focus always is to give my 100 percent and not to have any regrets after the match.”
During his swashbuckling double ton, Ishan Kishan was involved in a 290-run partnership with Virat Kohli, who scored 113 off 91 balls.
“I am happy that I got an opportunity to bat along with him (Kohli) but it wasn’t in my mind at that time. I got to learn a lot of things batting with him. Since it was Virat bhai I was trying to converse as much as possible with him so that I can learn. I hope to build many more partnerships with him,” Kishan said.
(With PTI inputs)
