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Watch: 19-year-old Ishan Kishan hits six sixes in 61-ball 86 in Ranji Trophy quarter-final

by Wisden Staff January 16, 2023 - 4:41am 3 minute read

Watch: A teenage Ishan Kishan tore into the Haryana bowlers by blasting 86 in 61 balls to take Jharkhand to their first ever Ranji Trophy semi-final.

Ishan Kishan has been called up to the India Test squad for the first as backup wicketkeeper.

Kishan’s inclusion comes as a result of the absence of Rishabh Pant, who is likely to miss the majority of 2023 following his involvement in a car accident.

Kishan, along with Suryakumar Yadav, have been included in the squad for the first two Tests against Australia as the Border-Gavaskar Trophy returns, with India presumably hoping the pair can add some white-ball firepower to their red-ball line-up.

Kishan, 24, has long been considered a player of considerable talent by India and captained them at the 2016 Under-19 World Cup team. He recently scored his maiden international century – an ODI double-century, in fact – during India’s three-match series in Bangladesh.

Having made his first-class debut at 16, Kishan boasts a modest record with an average of 38.76 from 48 matches – a number marginally better than the 37.95 of the uncapped KS Bharat, the first-choice wicketkeeper. This season in the Ranji Trophy he has scored 132 and 22 against Kerala, and 13 and 13 against Services. He did not keep wicket in either match.

Long before that, he had made an early impression on the competition, scoring four of his six first-class centuries while still in his teens. In 2016, a 19-year-old Kishan blasted 86 from 61 balls to take Jharkhand to their first ever semi-final in the Ranji Trophy, where they would ultimately end up losing by 123 runs to Gujurat.

Opening the batting, Kishan blasted six sixes in a display of aggression that the selectors hope he will be able to replicate as they look to plug the gaping hole left by Pant’s absence.