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Ishan Kishan exudes mystery and fascination. The
Indian wicketkeeper, who played in all formats including two Tests, 27 ODIs, 32
T20Is, and was an expert in white-ball cricket, especially T20 cricket, appears
to have vanished from the national stage overnight when India’s World Cup
campaign began in October. His request to leave the Indian team midway through
the South Africa trip, claiming personal reasons, is the last time anyone heard
about him. He was therefore dropped from the Test team.
The story has been enhanced by Kishan’s exclusion from
the three-match T20I series against Afghanistan. For the wicketkeeper position,
the national selectors have chosen Jitesh Sharma and Sanju Samson over Ishan.
KL Rahul, the current first-choice wicketkeeper in both the Test and ODI teams,
has also replaced him in those teams.
There has been a lot of conjecture over the potential
reasons behind his exclusion since the BCCI revealed the roster on Sunday
night. A possible explanation is that he might have received punishment for
going to a TV show without authorization. Insiders dispute this assertion.
Another idea is that, after receiving clearance to depart the team in South
Africa on December 17, he has still not informed the BCCI of his availability.
Considering that the BCCI or the selectors may always ask him how long his
“leave” will be if they truly want him on the team, this may still be
a poor excuse.
All of this creates a certain amount of curiosity, and
the BCCI hasn’t tried to stop rumours by giving an explanation for his
non-selection. It is said that Kishan is in India, but no one has been able to
get in touch with him. Without much luck, even a few of his Jharkhand teammates
have attempted to get in touch with him.
The Ranji Trophy first-round match between his state
and Saurashtra ended on Monday, and the 25-year-old keeper-batsman decided not
to play. Officials from the state association have stated that they will speak
with Kishan and make a decision regarding his choice by Tuesday night.
Not one of the three Twenty20 Internationals in South
Africa included Kishan. But of the three T20Is he had played so far, two had
been half-centuries against Australia at home in November, and the other saw
him out for a duck. Unlike many other players of the World Cup team, he was not
included in the ODI squad that travelled to South Africa.