The last T20I series against West Indies did not turn out to be a pretty smooth one for Indian wicketkeeper Ishan Kishan but in the first T20I of the ongoing three-match series against Sri Lanka the Indian wicketkeeper-batsman played a terrific innings and scored 89 runs off 56 balls to help his side in reaching a total of 199 runs.
While talking about his batting, Ishan recalled how the senior players and head coach motivated him to get his form back.
Ishan speaks
“Always a senior player would want a youngster to be in a good head space. Be it (coach) Rahul (Dravid) bhai, Virat (Kohli) bhai or Rohit bhai, they all have passed this phase. They are aware how we feel when we don’t perform well,” Ishan Kishan said at the post-match media interaction.
“I didn’t do well against the West Indies. They always told me that they know about my talent and what I can do for the team. ‘We trust in you. Never ever you think that we are doubting your abilities’. They always help you out with small, small things be it your batting grip or the attacking mindset. Same goes when you don’t perform. So you need to be in a very good space. You need to talk to your seniors, because they are much more experienced than us. So it’s very helpful when I sit with Rohit bhai for a conversation," the 23-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman explained.
While talking about his preparations and planning, young Indian wicketkeeper revealed how Indian skipper Rohit Sharma helped him in improving his game.
Advice for Ishan
“He (Rohit Sharma) always keeps telling me that ‘you can hit whenever you go out there in the middle’. The important thing for me where I was erring was about rotating the strikes, and taking singles. Obviously he has helped me out in those areas, especially when I’m batting at the nets. He keeps telling me to try how to rotate the strike. ‘You can hit anyway, but it’s about rotating the strike and keeping the bowlers under pressure’, he would say. When you get their full support, our job is to continue our disciplined life, be it the fitness, homework, or batting pattern we just have to continue."
In the first T20I of the series, Indian team secured a 62-run victory as the visitors could only reach a total of 137 runs losing 6 wickets.
