"I wanted No. 23, but that was taken by Kuldeep Yadav" - Ishan Kishan on choosing his Indian jersey number
Wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan wears jersey No. 32 whenever he plays for India. Every cricketer has a unique story associated with the jersey number that they choose before making their international debut.
In a video posted by the BCCI on Instagram, Ishan opened up on his jersey number for the Men in Blue. He claimed that he wanted an Indian jersey with the number '23' on the back. However, that was already taken by wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav.
Ishan Kishan then rang up his mother and asked her what needed to be done about the jersey number. Here's what he had to say about that conversation:
"I wanted jersey No. 23, but that was taken by Kuldeep Yadav. So I had to choose another number and I called my mom to ask her which number I should take. She told me to see if 32 is available. I didn't ask for any reason and straightaway took No. 32."
Ishan Kishan on pursuing cricket professionally
Every young and budding cricketer has to make a decision at some point in his teenage on whether he wants to pursue the dream of playing for India one day. Ishan also spoke about the time when he decided that cricket was the only road ahead for him and that he wanted to perform as a professional.
The southpaw shifted from Bihar to Jharkhand to get regular opportunities and worked his way up to get into the Indian team. On this, he stated:
"I had decided to become a professional cricketer at the age of 14 when I moved to Jharkhand. The goal was to play first for India U19 and then India. I am really grateful and it has been a long journey."
India’s T20I squad against New Zealand: Hardik Pandya (Captain), Suryakumar Yadav (vice-captain), Ishan Kishan (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Deepak Hooda, Rahul Tripathi, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik, Shivam Mavi, Prithvi Shaw, Mukesh Kumar.