Perhaps, 2024 was a year that Ishan Kishan would like to forget in a hurry. Or perhaps not. The 26-year-old’s story of redemption is way more compelling than his stylish 45-ball-century on his Sunrisers Hyderabad debut in the IPL against Rajasthan Royals here on Sunday. “The nervousness was there. Looking at the team, Pat (Cummins) and the coach gave me a lot of confidence. The environment is so calm. I just enjoyed my time in the middle,” Kishan said after collecting his Player of The Match trophy for his maiden IPL ton.
Around this time last year, Kishan was dropped from the central contracts as national selectors and BCCI top brass felt that he had no time for Ranji Trophy.
From being among the top three keeper-batters in the country alongside Rishabh Pant and Sanju Samson, Kishan was not even in the periphery, left behind to learn a lesson or two.
Suddenly he had a lot of time and by his own admission, it was well spent.
“I had a lot of time, I was practising a lot, worked hard on my batting. The preparation was good,” he said.
Indeed it was.
Unlike the other years when he would mainly train at the MI’s ground in Ghansoli, this time he used the hard-earned money into making a cricket academy of his own in his hometown Patna.
“He trained in two sessions every day. The morning session focused on cricket skills at his academy, lasting 2-3 hours and being very intense. In the evening, he would either do gym workouts or speed training for 1-2 hours,” a source, who has been primary witness to Kishan’s hard work, said.
To cut down his technical flaws, the evenings were spent analysing his own videos.
“Apart from this, he worked extensively on his mental game by analysing his own videos.” Unlike earlier years, when he was on the move due to India commitments, the time off from cricket before the domestic season was spent at home along with his family.
“He chose to train at his own academy in Patna, never traveling elsewhere, which allowed him to stay focused and put in consistent, dedicated work in his own environment,” the source added.
His skipper Pat Cummins had the best compliment for him.
“Ishan today was incredible. Just trying to play with freedom. The boys have created a blue-print for the rest of the year”.
Kishan can’t stop gushing about his skipper.
“Pat – he knows what’s there for the team. We have to enjoy whatever your game-play is. You have to plan accordingly, don’t be afraid of getting out.” Ishan Kishan is back and in a regal manner.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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