Ishan Kishan's T20I woes could see him sidelined for the T20 World Cup in Australia.
June 2022 was a highly productive month for Ishan Kishan. The month saw the southpaw top the T20I batting charts, amassing 235 runs, 81 more than what the second-highest run-scorer could make. The runs flowed at an outstanding strike rate of 153.59. The month also witnessed him taking a giant leap in the ICC rankings as in the middle of the month, he found himself ranked 6th best in the men’s T20I batting rankings. He had got back the touch, lost during the IPL, in a very significant manner. And all these couldn’t have come at a better time for him, with the T20 World Cup in his sight.
A month and a few days later, he finds himself omitted from the 15-member Indian squad for the Asia Cup 2022, failing to make it even amongst the reserves. While the month of June was all about him getting a chance in each of the seven T20Is that India played, the next couple of months saw him being benched in 12 of the 14 limited-over games. Forget the crucial games, Kishan wasn’t considered even in dead rubbers, missing two of three such games since July. The management didn’t seem interested in playing him. At first, it was thought that they have already finalised him for the third opener’s role, however, his omission from the Asia Cup squad implies that they have certainly moved on from him.
Now, let’s throw some light on various things that might have led to Kishan’s axing.
For the unversed, the teams were required to select only 15 players for the Asia Cup, and so would be the case for the T20 World Cup. This limit on the squad usually instigates the teams to have as many utility or multi-dimensional players as possible in their squad. It resists them from selecting specialists. This is one thing that might have gone against the selection of Kishan.
Prior to the start of the recently concluded T20I series vs West Indies, everyone was expecting either of Kishan or Pant to partner Rohit at the top, however, Kishan’s MI teammate Suryakumar was the one who was chosen as an able ally to Rohit. Except the last game which he missed, Suryakumar opened in each of the first 4 T20Is. And he didn’t disappoint, topping the run charts in the series. While his spot in the middle-order wasn’t in any doubt, this performance further solidified his usefulness, that of doubling up as an opener. Not only Suryakumar, but many others like Hooda, Pant, and even Virat can open in case any of the regular openers misses out. This could be one of the top reasons behind Kishan’s exclusion.
Team India, with an eye on the World Cup, have adopted a more aggressive batting approach in the build-up to the marquee event. This new approach can be defined as “risking wickets in pursuit of quick runs”, with a view of breaching the 200-runs mark in each innings. For any team having set sight on a 200+ score, utilising the powerplay overs and minimising the dot balls becomes essential. And Ishan Kishan falls behind in this race. In all the T20s that he has played in 2022, he scores at just 116.74 runs per 100 balls in the powerplay overs. Also, half of the total deliveries that he tackles in the powerplay result in a dot ball. While he has survived most of the powerplays, this high-risk approach not only necessitates him covering up for it in the middle overs but also puts pressure on the other batter. With both these numbers and methods not syncing with Team India’s new brand, he falls behind in the pecking order.
Even though Kishan is quite an attractive puller of the ball, he is still quite fragile when it comes to tackling the express pace and bounce on offer. He has that tendency of compulsively pulling and hooking the short balls without going back and across in the crease, something very similar to Rohit Sharma. While not going back and across is one thing, losing control of his body and completely bending his front foot while playing the short ball is what has been bothering him. While the modern era revolves around clearing the front leg and striking across the line, it is ideal to go back and across while pulling the short ball.
Image Credit – Windies Cricket’s YT channel
Moving back becomes all more important for someone like Kishan who doesn’t boast of a tall frame. With the World Cup slated to be played in Australia, a place known for assisting the pacers, and offering good bounce, his short ball shortcoming could also be one of the reasons why he has been left out of the Asia Cup squad, touted as a preparatory tournament for the World Cup.
Though the exclusion from the Asia Cup squad doesn’t necessarily mean that he has no chance of getting into the World Cup team, he will need a bit of luck to figure in the Indian T20I squad for the home series against Australia and South Africa, sandwiched between the Asia Cup and World Cup, and push his case for a T20 World Cup spot. That, however, remains a distant dream for now.
