“Ishan Kishan is a star player, not surprised when I saw him teeing off” - Jason Roy
England opener Jason Roy, on Monday, described Ishan Kishan as a star player and said that he was least surprised by the performance of the Mumbai Indians batsman on debut.
Ishan Kishan smashed 56 off 32 on his T20I debut against England in the second game of the five-match series at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday.
Speaking about Ishan Kishan’s knock at a pre-match press conference ahead of the third T20I, Roy said England did not get their lengths right, and the left-hander capitalised on the same. He explained in this regard:
“It was just execution on the night. I think a couple of times we might have got the things wrong with the ball; he capitalised by hitting them for six whereas when I was opening, I probably missed out on the balls that should have gone for boundaries. It is just about making sure you execute your skills really well.”
On Ishan Kishan’s success, the 30-year-old pointed out that he has been doing the same in the IPL. Roy said:
“Ishan Kishan is a star player; he has done that for Mumbai Indians in the IPL numerous times. I was not surprised when I saw him kind of teeing off a bit; everyone knows he is a star player. Good on him.”
Captain Virat Kohli’s hilarious order to Ishan Kishan
After India lost KL Rahul early in the chase on Sunday, Ishan Kishan featured in a 94-run stand for the second wicket with his captain Virat Kohli. The partnership went a long way in ensuring India’s successful pursuit of 165.
Interestingly, Kohli gave Ishan Kishan an amusing instruction after the latter completed his fifty on debut.
In an interview to Yuzvendra Chahal posted on bcci.tv, the left-hander revealed why he didn’t raise his bat immediately after reaching his fifty and what followed next. Ishan Kishan said in this regard:
“I wasn’t nervous. Actually, I was not sure that I had reached my fifty and when Virat bhai told me ‘top innings’, then I realised. But generally, I do not raise my bat that much after hitting a half-century, maybe just once or twice. But then I heard Virat bhai’s voice from behind ‘Oye, charo taraf ghoom ke bat dikha; sabko bat dikha; pehla match hai tera’ (raise your bat in all directions; show your bat to everyone; it’s your first match).”
With the five-match series now level at 1-1, India and England will meet in the third T20I on Tuesday.