India announced their Test squad for the first two matches against England, picking a largely predictable group with a couple of surprises.

One of the notable absentees was Ishan Kishan, India’s usual backup wicketkeeper, extending the saga around his continued absence from the team.

Ishan Kishan – a plea for rest?

According to reports in the Indian Express, Kishan had requested for a break after India’s ODI World Cup campaign, but was named in the Suryakumar Yadav led team for the subsequent T20I series against Australia, with the first match being played four days after the final.

After playing in the first three T20Is, and scoring two fifties, Kishan was rested for the last two T20Is, with Jitesh Sharma replacing him.

The decision was questioned by some, including former India cricketer and Afghanistan mentor Ajay Jadeja, who told Sports Tak: “Was he [Kishan] really that tired after three matches that he needed rest? He didn’t even play a lot of games at the World Cup.

“He deserved his spot in the playing XI for the first few World Cup matches. How many Indian players have scored a double century on a good day?”

On Kishan’s part, the request had seemingly come after months of travelling that did not necessarily result in a lot of game time. He was dropped two games into the World Cup campaign, and in all, played 17 out of 23 T20Is, two out of eight Tests and 11 out of 35 ODIs in 2023.

Another series, another request

The same report notes that Kishan’s request to be rested from the three T20Is against South Africa wasn’t met. He was named in the squad that travelled to South Africa, but did not get any T20I game time, with India preferring Jitesh Sharma.

Subsequently, he was withdrawn from the two-Test series, with a BCCI statement clarifying that the decision was made after Kishan “requested to be released due to personal reasons”. KS Bharat was named his replacement.

TV show appearance and subsequent drama

It was understood that Kishan had taken a break due to “mental fatigue” and wanted to spend time at home. However, when Kishan appeared on a television quiz show in his usual free-flowing avatar as a guest contestant alongside Smriti Mandhana, it reportedly ruffled a few feathers.

Later, a trip to Dubai, where he enjoyed his brother’s birthday celebration, added to the rather unfair speculation around his personal choices.

The Afghanistan series and Dravid’s directive

Kishan reportedly was available for the Afghanistan T20Is, but wasn’t picked. Reports then began to circulate that Kishan, alongside another notable absentee Shreyas Iyer, had been dropped due for disciplinary reasons.

Rahul Dravid, ahead of the Afghanistan T20Is, made it clear that Kishan was still unavailable for selection.

 

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“No, absolutely not [disciplinary issue],” Dravid told reporters in Mohali, ahead of the first T2oI. “Ishan Kishan was not available for selection. Ishan requested a break, which we agreed on in South Africa. We supported it. He has not yet made himself available. I don’t think he has made himself available as yet.

“When he is available, he will play domestic cricket and make himself available for selection”.

The last sentence was interpreted as a directive for Kishan to play domestic cricket immediately, but he did not link up with the Jharkhand squad for their Ranji Trophy game against Maharashtra two days later.

Missing from the squad against England

On January 12, India announced their squad for the first two Tests against England: Kishan, who had so far been the backup wicketkeeper to KL Rahul, wasn’t picked, with India bringing in rookie keeper Dhruv Jurel as the third glovesman after Rahul and KS Bharat.

The same day, Kishan posted a video of him training and meditating, with a caption that had no words, just a running emoji.

It only extends the speculation around Kishan, and also bares the constant scrutiny that mental health fatigue induces in India, often to an unfair degree. It’s within Kishan’s rights to ask for a break: there could be details to the story that the public is unaware of, but the constant targeting and conjecture only mounts pressure on a young player, one who is possibly trying to catch a break amidst a hectic cricketing calendar.

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