Despite not performing consistently in the previous cycle, Mumbai Indians (MI) had the strongest Indian core among all teams.
Despite not performing consistently in the previous cycle, Mumbai Indians (MI) had the strongest Indian core among all teams. Probably, they were the only team that could play all Indian players in the XI and still compete hard.
There were no doubts about the quality of personnel; it’s just that they didn’t fire in tandem at any stage, which led to no results. They had several underperformers in the side, and one such player was Ishan Kishan.
MI bought Kishan for a whopping INR 15.25 crore in the IPL 2022 auction and had high expectations from him. However, he couldn’t perform according to the expectations and was mighty inconsistent throughout the cycle.
He scored 320 runs at an abysmal average of 22.85 and a strike rate of 148.83 in 14 innings, including a fifty. He had two ducks and eight scores of 20 or fewer in 14 attempts, showing how much he struggled throughout the season.
Mumbai Indians have a major headache on whom to retain and whom to let go. Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, and Suryakumar Yadav are sure retentions, whereas Rohit Sharma, Tilak Varma, and Tim David present a strong case.
Further, Nehal Wadhera and Naman Dhir were other impressive options in the previous cycle. That leaves no place for Kishan.
𝙎𝙈𝘼𝘾𝙆𝙀𝘿!
Fifty partnership up between Ishan Kishan & SKY
1️⃣0️⃣0️⃣ up for Mumbai Indians 🔥🔥
Follow the match ▶️ https://t.co/QDEf6eqX22 #TATAIPL | #PBKSvMI pic.twitter.com/WL7fnpiI8b
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) May 3, 2023
His performances were not good enough, either. Kishan batted at his preferred position throughout and couldn’t churn out consistent performances.
Given how well others have done over the years, Kishan might not be in contention for now. If MI feels, they will re-bid for him in the IPL 2025 auction.
As visible by his price tag, Ishan Kishan was in high demand in the last mega auction. He was at his peak and provided ample value to the sides.
He could open the innings or bat in the middle order according to the requirement. Further, he is LHB, which provides variety to the batting unit and also a wicketkeeper, making him a complete package.
Ishan ne kari ballebaazi seena taan 😤
3rd 50 of #IPL2023 from kamaal Kishan! ✨#LSGvMI #IPL2023 #TATAIPL #IPLonJioCinema #EveryGameMatters | @mipaltan pic.twitter.com/cMMpRWhxAq
— JioCinema (@JioCinema) May 16, 2023
However, things didn’t pan out as expected during his stint with Mumbai Indians, and the investment wasn’t really worth it. Even his recent form in the T20s hasn’t been convincing enough, which would reduce his value significantly compared to the previous mega auction.
Kishan will obviously be sold to some team, and even MI might go after him again, even though he didn’t perform according to the expectations. But his price might not be as high as the last time.
For more updates, follow CricXtasy on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Telegram and YouTube.
