Ishan Kishan update: Home-cooked food, family’s support helping wicketkeeper-batsman get back in groove | Cricket News

In the company of his loved ones, Ishan Kishan is eyeing a comeback to competitive cricket after a gap of two months. For the past six weeks, the wicketkeeper-batsman has been training in Vadodara at the Reliance Cricket Stadium alongside Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya.His non-selection in the recent Afghanan series and the five-match Test against England had raised eyebrows but those close to the player feel that the break allowed him to spend time with his family and has helped him to get over mental fatigue that came with the constant travel and ICC ODI World Cup heartbreak.
The Indian Express understands that apart from training and working on his batting technique – the reason given to him the team management for picking KL Rahul ahead of him in the Test series in South Africa – the 25-year-old is also living with his family in a 2bhk rented flat, where his parents and his two-year-old nephew are present with him.
“The break has done wonders to him. He has rented a flat in Vadodara. His entire family barring his elder brother (Raj) who is a surgeon in Lucknow, everyone is staying with him. The family is completely backing him in this tough time. He has been constantly on the road since making his international debut. He always used to crib a lot about not being able to eat food cooked his mother. Now he is getting it three times a day. He is spending time with Viraj, his nephew, which has made him very relaxed and he is enjoying the company of his family members” a source in the know revealed.
Ishan Kishan with his two-year-old nephew Viraj at their rented apartment in Vadodara. (Special Arrangement).
“He had never complained about it but the ODI World Cup final loss in Ahmedabad, like the billions in our country, has left him shattered. He wanted the break right after the tournament but was asked the management to play and he did it without asking any questions. He tried to push his body and brain but mental fatigue caught up with him and it was only then that he requested a break.”
Missing Ranji Trophy
Ishan Kishan’s absence from the Ranji Trophy has seen questions arise on the cricketer prioritising the Indian Premier League (IPL) over domestic matches. As reported this newspaper on Saturday, BCCI secretary Jay Shah has warned top cricketers that domestic cricket remains a “critical yardstick for selection” to the national team and non-participation in it will have “severe implications”.
However, those close to the player feel the secretary’s warning is not directed towards Ishan. “Ishan has always given priority to the Ranji Trophy. In the 2022-23 season, he was constantly travelling with the Indian cricket team but despite the hectic schedule he played a couple of Ranji Trophy games, and scored a century against Kerala, which helped him earn a place in India’s Test team. All these accusations are just rubbish.”

Ahead of the first T20I against Afghanan, Team India’s head coach Rahul Dravid has categorically said that the left-hander will be back into the national fold once he makes himself available for selection. “I am sure when he is available (for selection), he will play domestic cricket (and come back). So that was the case,” Dravid had said.
However, post India’s win in the Vishakhapatnam, Dravid took a U-turn, saying the management is not “forcing him to do anything” and he never said that he would have to play domestic cricket to get back into the team.
“We’re not forcing him to do anything and we are in touch with him. It’s not that we’re not in touch. We know what it is, but he hasn’t yet started playing, right? So, at the moment, it’s not something that we would consider because, you know, he’s maybe not ready. He decides when he wants to be ready,” Dravid said.
The comeback
As per multiple sources, Kishan will make a return to competitive cricket in the DY Patil T20 tournament and is eyeing a comeback into the Indian cricket team for the T20 World Cup.
“He will ask for a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the board. He will be playing for the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). He wants to earn his spot in India’s T20 World Cup squad with a good outing in the IPL. It is a long road but the hunger to play cricket is back and he wants to play in all three formats,” said a source.