Virender Sehwag praised the efforts of Ishan Kishan that helped Indian level the T20I series against England. He told Cricbuzz that the 21-year-old looked so fearless and it seemed he was playing in IPL.
What Sehwag Thinks
Ishan Kishan, after showing his mastery in the stage of Indian Premier League, debuted for India in T20I against England on Sunday night. He scored 56 off 32 balls with five fours and four sixes and stitched a crucial 94-run stand with skipper Virat Kohli. India won the match comfortably and Kishan was awarded with the man-of-match prize. While he earned praise from different corner of the fraternity, former India opener Virender Sehwag was no exception. Sehwag said that he was impressed with Kishan’s confidence and approach. He told Cricbuzz, “One thing I liked about Kishan is that he didn’t think he was playing international cricket maybe he was thinking he is still playing in the IPL. The way he played his shots, it’s the same way he played in the IPL because he faces similar bowlers in the IPL as well.”
Sehwag added,“In international cricket, on debut players get nervous, but Ishan Kishan didn’t seem like that at all, that was a good thing.” However, Virender Sehwag went on to highlight the facts that worked for India in the second match in Ahmedabad. “Everything went well for India. Ishant Kishan’s innings released pressure off from everyone else, because if the top order score runs, then it helps the lower order batsmen. It was a brilliant innings for Kishan.”
Kishan Achieves Unique Feat
In the last season of Indian Premier League, Ishan Kishan had smashed 516 runs in 14 matches, averaging 57. Before going to bat for India in the second T20I, his Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma had asked him to play freely just like IPL as mentioned by Kishan later. He replaced Shikhar Dhawan and opened India’s batting along with KL Rahul.
His half-century came off 28 balls with back-to-back sixes off leg-spinner Adil Rashid. In the process he became only the second India batsman after Ajinkya Rahane to register a fifty on his T20I debut.
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