Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar hailed Ishan Kishan’s splendid 56-ball 89 run-knock in the first India-Sri Lanka T20I in Lucknow on Thursday. But he feels that the youngster needs to show consistency in a bid to cement his place in India’s T20 World Cup squad.
Kishan’s position as the opening batter was in doubt after his three lacklustre innings resulted in just 71 runs against the West Indies recently. An injury to reserve opener Ruturaj Gaikwad’s injury gave him another opportunity to prove himself and the 23-year-old did not disappoint. The southpaw hit an explosive 89 (off 56 balls), in the first T20I against Sri Lanka in Lucknow on Thursday. His superb knock which included 10 fours and three sixes, set the base for India’s 199 in the first innings, with Shreyas Iyer also scoring 28-ball 57. Rohit Sharma and Co defended that total by a margin of 62 runs, taking a 1- 0 lead in the three-match T20I series.
Kishan now holds the record of the highest score by an Indian wicketkeeper-batter in the shortest format of the game. He surpassed Rishabh Pant’s unbeaten 65 against West Indies in 2019, to etch his name for a new record. However, despite his brilliant knock and the record, Gavaskar feels that the youngster has urged him to be consistent. The Little Master hailed the southpaw for his drive and pull shots and felt that the conditions in the first T20I aided Ishan in his knock.
“Certainly, the way he batted today, that does give the indication. But this is only the first game,” Gavasakar told Star Sports. “In the three matches against the West Indies, he didn’t quite look comfortable. That length, pace and bounce were all different. Here the bounce was below the shoulder, towards midriff, making it easier for him.”
The former Indian skipper praised Kishan for his effort and also urged him to be consistent with his knocks. “But not taking away anything from his innings, some of the drives and pull shots that he played were terrific, but this was one innings. Let’s wait for consistency. Let’s wait a couple of matches,” he explained.
The batting legend is also of the opinion that once Kishan shows signs of consistency, he can make the India squad given that he offers a lot more to the team. “Once the consistency is there, you can say that ‘this is the guy we want, because he offers you three things – he is a wicketkeeper, he is a left-hander and he can bat at top and also finish the innings as well Batting at five or six down″ Gavaskar added.
The bilateral series now moves to Dharamsala for the next two T20Is on February 26 and 27 respectively.
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