Picture Credit: IPL/BCCI
Mumbai Indians wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan did find a place in India's T20 World Cup squad on the back of his consistent performances with the Indian team. However, he is not looking to just stop and bask in the glory of his achievement but is sweating it out in the nets preparing for the IPL season resumption ahead.
As the five-time champions provided a little sneak-peak into their nets session ahead of the curtain-raiser to the UAE leg of the competition in 2021, Kishan could be seen smashing hard through the covers in a picture shared on their social media.
"???-??????. ???????. ???. ??????. #OneFamily #MumbaiIndians #IPL2021 @ishankishan51," the picture was captioned.
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Earlier, while speaking to the press after the squad announcement for T20 World Cup 2021, chief selector Chetan Sharma revealed the rationale behind picking Kishan in the squad.
"Ishan Kishan can bat as an opener as well as fit in as a middle-order batsman. He gave us a lot of options as a player. He's already opened in the ODI format and even got a fifty in the first game. He's also a good player of spin in the middle order," Sharma said.
"Also a left-hander is important. When leg-spinners from different countries come at us, someone explosive like Ishan is important. Shreyas hasn't played much cricket of late so we have kept him on standby. That's why Ishan made the cut," he added.
While Ishan was impressive in the few opportunities he got with the Indian team, he had a below-par run in the India leg of IPL 2021 and was even dropped from the Mumbai Indians XI. However, given that this going to be a fresh start, they are likely to start with him when they meet the Chennai Super Kings on September 19 at the Dubai International Stadium.
Both Mumbai and Chennai are the most successful teams in the history of the tournament and they share an intense rivalry so much so that it is known as the El Clasico of the tournament. However, since both the teams have huge fan bases and their history of high-octane and action-filled last-over thrillers, the opening match of the second phase of IPL 2021 is likely to smash a few viewership records.