Kamal Ghorui
Sunrisers Hyderabad wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan said he did not spend time sulking over his near two-year absence from the Indian team and instead focused on improving his game and scoring runs to regain consistency.Kishan returned to the India setup earlier this year for the T20I series against New Zealand and the T20 World Cup after strong performances in domestic cricket, where he led Jharkhand to the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) title and scored more than 500 runs.
“When I wasn’t playing and was out of the team, I told myself I can’t cry or sulk about it. It’s the easiest thing to do for any sportsman. It might earn you the sympathy of a few people, you might even feel good about it, but it won’t get you anywhere,” Ishan, the Sunrisers Hyderabad player, told JioHotstar as quoted by news agency PTI.“The only thing that could have gotten me back into the reckoning was runs. So, I just wanted to improve my game and score as many runs as I could, even if that meant hitting more sixes than any other batter.”He said the time away from the national side increased his focus on domestic cricket and helped him understand the value of consistency.“Only consistent run-scoring can bring you back into the team. If 300 runs in a season are not enough, score 400; if not that, score 500. At the end of the day, cricket is our daily bread.“When you’re out of the team, you understand its importance and start respecting every game. You become hungrier, and that was my focus: to become the best,” he added.Talking about his batting role, Kishan said playing at No. 3 has helped him understand how to build innings and stay at the crease longer.“After having played for so many years as a No. 3 batter, if you are set, you look to score big and bat till the end. It makes the job easier for the other batters with you, as they don’t feel the pressure..“That is my only thinking, to keep things as simple as I can, be in a good headspace, and just take it one match at a time. If we play good cricket, the rest of the team will learn from it.“In the end, it’s a team sport. When you play good cricket, it rubs off on the others. I have also made a lot of mistakes, so my only aim is not to repeat them, which unfortunately, I did in the end in this game,” he added.In the IPL match in Jaipur on Saturday, Kishan came in at his usual position and scored 74 off 31 balls as Sunrisers Hyderabad chased down 229 run target set by Rajasthan Royals.
