Legendary Indian batsman VVS Laxman heaped praise on young Ishan Kishan for his fearless approach and the way the youngster batted “in a carefree and fearless fashion” in his debut for Team India in the second T20I of the ongoing five-match T20I series against England on Sunday (March 14) in Ahmedabad.
The Jharkhand lad played made a memorable India debut against England, as the rising star played an entertaining knock of 56 runs off just 32 deliveries, as well as, stitched a 94-run partnership with captain Virat Kohli to guide India to a seven-wicket win in the second T20I to level the home series on Sunday.
Speaking on the post-match show on Star Sports network, Laxman said: “I loved Ishan Kishan's fearless approach. It is not easy to bat in a carefree and fearless fashion in your debut match. We say that he has played international bowlers in the IPL but that nervousness is there.”
He added, “Every player has the dream of playing for India, there is a lot of competition and he played in place of Shikhar Dhawan today. But it didn't seem like this was his first match. He played his natural game, not only on the on-side but he played shots on the off-side as well.”
Laxman further credited Ishan’s stint with the Mumbai Indians in IPL for his immense confidence on a bigger stage. He added, “He needs to continue playing his natural game like this. And I believe the young players who are coming and performing in international cricket, the main reason for that is the IPL.”
He signed off, “Every match in the IPL is like an international match, there is pressure and expectation from you and you play every match in front of a full crowd. So, that atmosphere is like international cricket. The way he batted last year, because of that he batted with confidence today as well.”
