"Sure-shot opener for India at the World Cup" - Brett Lee on Ishan Kishan
Former Australian speedster Brett Lee reckons that Ishan Kishan should be a lock for one of the spots in India's squad for the 2023 World Cup. However, Lee warned that the keeper-batter must maintain his fitness and consistency to remain in contention for a call-up.
Kishan recently made headlines as he became the youngest player to score a double-century in ODI cricket history. The southpaw came in for Rohit Sharma during the third ODI against Bangladesh and made the most of his opportunity.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Lee feels that Kishan must open the innings for India at the World Cup. He said:
"With this deadly double, Ishan has staked a strong claim to open for India in the ODI World Cup at home in 2023. Will this happen? I don't know. Should it happen? Hell yeah, it should. The guy just scored the fastest 200 in ODI history.
"But if he can show consistency, stay fit, and be around the next few months, he should be a sure-shot opener for India at the World Cup."
Kishan also holds the record for the fastest double hundred, doing so off 132 balls. This helped him build a stand of 290 with Virat Kohli and propel India to a steep total of 409 and win by 227 runs.
"Ishan Kishan has to forget about the euphoria of his double hundred" - Brett Lee
The New South Wales lad further claimed that India will have to prepare Kishan for the future as well. He also advised the youngster to focus on bigger goals and leave the double hundred behind for now. Lee added:
"Back Ishan to make it in the World Cup squad with an eye on the future and clearly, he would be on a high after that knock as he should be. However, a word of caution. Too much praise has led to cobwebs in the head.
"So my advice to Ishan Kishan would be... forget about the milestone, forget about the double hundred as soon as you can. There are bigger milestones to achieve, higher peaks to scale."
𝟐𝟎𝟎 𝐑𝐔𝐍𝐒 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐈𝐒𝐇𝐀𝐍 𝐊𝐈𝐒𝐇𝐀𝐍 🔥🔥
𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐝𝐨𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐡𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧.
He is the fourth Indian to do so. Take a bow, @ishankishan51 💥💥
#BANvIND https://t.co/Mqr2EdJUJv
If the management seriously consider the keeper-batter for the role, it would mean dropping Shikhar Dhawan from the side.