Former India allrounder Irfan Pathan has taken an indirect dig at Ishan Kishan over his reluctance to play domestic cricket. The wicketkeeper-batsman’s attitude in recent days has surprised many as critics have taken shots at him and questioned his commitment as well.
The whole saga began when he raised a number of eyebrows by pulling out of the Test series against South Africa citing personal reasons. Although he had not played a competitive game for almost a month when he decided to take a break, reports stated that he was mentally tired due to the extensive traveling.
Things then took a surprising turn when he was not picked in the India squad for the three-match T20I series against Afghanistan and the selectors recalled Sanju Samson. India head coach Rahul Dravid then raised a number of eyebrows by stating that Ishan Kishan would have to play domestic cricket in order to be eligible for selection in the Indian team.
Irfan Pathan slams Ishan Kishan:
Ishan Kishan was expected to return to domestic cricket after Dravid’s statement but he decided against it. He was not selected in the squad for the ongoing series against England as well. Amidst all these, reports stated that he was practising with the Pandya brothers – Hardik and Krunal – in Baroda.
All the three players were training at the Kiran More Academy. However, it has not gone down well with Irfan Pathan. On Saturday (February 10), he took to X to express his surprise over players being fit enough for practice but not domestic cricket. His post could have been a dig at Pandya brothers as well who are not playing domestic cricket either.
“Finding it perplexing how someone can be fit enough to practice but not play domestic cricket. How does this even make sense?” wrote Irfan Pathan.
Finding it perplexing how someone can be fit enough to practice but not play domestic cricket. How does this even make sense?
— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) February 10, 2024
All the three players are likely to return to action in competitive cricket when the IPL gets underway next month. Hardik and Kishan will be playing for Mumbai Indians while Krunal will ply his trade for Lucknow Super Giants.
