After India defeated England by 108 runs in the second Test to level the five-Test series 1-1, head coach Rahul Dravid was once again asked about the way back into the Indian team for Ishan Kishan.
The wicketkeeper has not played for India since November and had requested the team management for a break in the middle of the South Africa tour in December citing personal reasons. He has since not featured for Jharkhand as well in the ongoing Ranji Trophy.
But with Rishabh Pant out of action due to his long term injury and KS Bharat struggling with the bat, the focus has understandably turned back on Ishan.
“There is way back for anyone and everyone. I don’t want to go on labouring about the Ishan Kishan point. Have tried to explain this as best as I can, the point was he had requested a break, we were happy to give him the break,” Dravid said in his post-match press conference on Monday after India’s victory.
“Whenever he is ready, I didn’t say he has to play domestic cricket, I said whenever he is ready, he needs to play some cricket and come back. The choice is his. We are not forcing him to do anything,” he added. “We are in touch with him, it is not that we have not been in touch. He has not yet started playing right so at the moment it is not something we can consider. Because you know he maybe he is not ready. He decides when he wants to be ready. We have got options with Rishabh injured and stuff. I am sure the selectors will weight all options,” he said.
Bharat was only able to score 23 runs across the two innings in the second Test to add to his tally of 69 runs from the first Test.
Talking about Bharat, Dravid said: “Disappointed is a strong word (for his batting form). I would not use that word. At times, young players do take time to develop. They grow at their own pace. Yeah I mean as a coach, you want players to grab the opportunities. His keeping has been good, he will also agree that he could have done better with the bat,” added the head coach.
The Indian think tank will have over a week to figure out their XI for the third Test in Rajkot. While there will be some interest in the injury status of KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadejawho missed the second Test, Virat Kohli’s comeback is the issue that will attract major attention over the coming days. The star batter chose to skip the first two Tests due to “personal reasons”.
