Wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan opened up about being sidelined from the Indian team for more than two years after leading Jharkhand to their maiden Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy title on Thursday (December 18).

The southpaw admitted he felt quite bad after his exclusion but added that he decided to respond by pushing himself harder rather than dwelling on frustration.

Kishan slammed a match-winning hundred in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy final against Haryana. He scored 101 runs off just 49 balls, including 10 sixes, as Jharkhand racked up a mammoth 262/3 in their allotted 20 overs.

The target proved to be too much for Haryana side, whose innings folded for 193 in 18.3 overs.

“When I was not selected in the Indian team, I felt quite bad because I was doing well. But I told myself that if I am not selected with this sort of performance, then maybe I have to do more. Maybe I have to make my team win. Maybe we have to do well as a unit,” Kishan told Sportstar.

“It’s important that you don’t allow the frustration to get to you. This is my message to all the youngsters - frustration is something that will take you one step down, but at the same time, you need to put in a lot of hard work and believe in yourself and just focus on what you need to achieve,” he added.

Despite his impressive exploits in the domestic one-day tournament, Ishan Kishan is not expected to be picked for the upcoming T20 World Cup. However, the continual snub no longer bothers him.

“I know you fancy your chances a lot of times. And when you don’t see your name, you just feel bad about it. So, I’m not in that zone anymore. I’m not expecting anything. But my job is to just keep performing," he said.

Ishan Kishan amassed 517 runs in 10 innings to emerged as the leading run-scorer in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He described Jharkhand’s title winning campaign as one of the most special moments of his career.

“It is definitely the happiest moment, because we have never won domestic tournaments under my captaincy. And, this was something where you had to prove yourself,” Kishan stated.

“There are times when you doubt yourself but when you win it, it’s all done and you know what quality you have, what changes you can do to your game, how you can turn the game around. Now, I have more trust in myself, more belief in my batting," he remarked.