Gautam Gambhir has criticised Ishan Kishan for failing to perform consistently with the bat. Just like many, Gambhir had also picked Ishan Kishan over Shubman Gill to open the innings in ODIs following his sensational double century against Bangladesh.
The team-management, however, preferred Gill as the opener and he totally justified the decision by scoring a double century, two centuries and a fifty in six ODIs against Sri Lanka and New Zealand.
Kishan, on the other hand, did not get a chance in the ODIs against Sri Lanka but played in all the three games against New Zealand although not as an opener. In those three games, his scores were 17, 8* and 5.
He has also played all the 5 T20Is that India have played so far and has failed to do well. In the 5 games, he has registered scores of 37, 2, 1, 4 and 19 with the last two scores coming in the ongoing series against New Zealand.
Gautam Gambhir on Ishan Kishan:
With Ishan Kishan failing to deliver with the bat after the double century against Bangladesh, Gautam Gambhir has come up with a strong statement for him. Known for his straightforward attitude, the former India opener has said that the youngster should focus on rotating strikes on a regular basis.
Not only Kishan, but Gambhir think the entire batting united of the Hardik Pandya-led side has struggled against spin bowlers. Gambhir’s comments came after Indian batsmen’s struggles in the second T20I against New Zealand.
“It’s not only one chink in his armour. Indian unit as a batting unit has struggled against spin. Just the ability to not be able to manoeuvre..it’s easy to hit those big sixes but the ability to rotate strikes consistently. And there was enough purchase for spinners as well. It was pretty much evident when you got Michael Bracewell against Ishan Kishan,” Gambhir told Star Sports.
“I think these young players need to learn quickly how to rotate strike because, on a wicket like this, it’s not gonna be easy to go down the ground and hit those big sixes. It’s a surprise because of the way he batted in Bangladesh after scoring that double-hundred. He has struggled after that, everyone thought his graph will start growing up with the kind of innings he has played,” Gambhir added.
“He still has to work a lot against playing spin because people will use a lot of spin against him in the first 6 overs. Because he still manages to play fast bowling very well. The sooner he improves against spin, the better it’s gonna be for him, especially in the T20 format,” Gambhir concluded.
Meanwhile, Team India beat New Zealand by six wickets in the second T20I to draw level in the three-match series. Chasing a modest total of 100 runs, India struggled against New Zealand bowlers and eventually crossed the finishing line with just one ball remaining.