'Don’t know what Ishan had for lunch': Surya heaps praise on Kishan after southpaw's match-winning 76 in Raipur

Suryakumar Yadav hailed Ishan Kishan for his “incredible” knock against New Zealand in Raipur as India went 2-0 up in a five-match Twenty20 International series with a commanding seven-wicket victory on Friday. Surya (82 not out) and Kishan (76) struck whirlwind half-centuries and shared a third-wicket partnership that was worth 122, which helped the Men in Blue chase down a target of 209 with 28 deliveries to spare.

It was Kishan, however, whose contribution was more crucial as he turned the game on its head by launching a vicious assault on the Kiwi attack in the powerplay, helping India post 75/2 in six over after losing openers Sanju Samson (6) and Abhishek Sharma (0) with just six runs on the board.

The turning point of the game was the third over of India’s chase, in which Zak Foulkes was smashed for 24 runs – Kishan being the batter on strike for a majority of those deliveries.

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Kishan and Surya would end up completing their half-centuries in 21 and 23 deliveries respectively. their contributions ensuring Team India got home in a canter despite being set over 200 to win.

“I don’t know what Ishan had for lunch in the afternoon or what pre-workout he had before the game, but I’ve never seen anyone bat at 6 for 2 in that manner and still end the powerplay around 67 or 70. I thought it was incredible. Chasing 200 or 210, this is what we want from batters - to go out there, express themselves, be happy in their own space. And that’s exactly what he did today,” Surya said during the post-match presentation ceremony.

“I was angry he didn’t give me strike in the powerplay, but that’s okay. I had some time, played eight or ten balls, and I knew that later on, when I had time, I could cover it up,” he added.

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Responding to Surya’s “lunch” comment, Kishan revealed that while he had “normal food” during the day, it was him being in a “good headspace” that played a big role in the victory in Raipur.

“I just had normal food. I was focusing more on what I had to do today and being in a very good headspace for this game. Sometimes you understand that you’re batting well. You just have to be in a good headspace and try to watch the ball and play your good shots.

“We were looking not to take risks, not to go cross-batted, but I was still looking to score as many runs as possible in the powerplay. At the end of the day, when you’re chasing a 200-plus total, you have to get good runs in the powerplay. It depends on how you’re batting,” he added.

Kishan explains the importance of domestic cricket in his comeback

Kishan had forced his way back into the Indian team after a two-year exile after an outstanding run in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, where he led from the front as Jharkhand won their maiden. And after a blip in Nagpur, where he was dismissed for 8, Kishan bounced back in style at Raipur’s Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh Stadium with his seventh T20I half-century.

“Sometimes it’s important to do it for yourself, to answer your own questions about how you’re batting and whether you’re capable of playing for India. That’s why it was important for me to play domestic cricket and get runs. The good part was that we won the trophy as well, and I carried that confidence here. “So it was a pretty good day for me,” the Sunrisers Hyderabad batter added.

Both Ishan (237.50) and Surya (221.62) had a strike after above 200 despite facing a tricky situation, and it was no different for all-rounder Shivam Dube – who remained unbeaten on 36 off 18 balls and smashed three sixes and a four.

The two teams now travel to Guwahati, where the Black Caps face an upbeat Indian side in a must-win clash.