Ishan Kishan to play in DY Patil tournament after BCCI diktat: Report

A day after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) advised centrally contracted players to participate in the Ranji Trophy, reports have emerged that wicketkeeper-batsman Ishan Kishan would make a comeback to competitive cricket. However, instead of the impending Ranji Trophy final round on February 16, Kishan will return to the field in the DY Patil tournament. According to Dainik Bhaskar, Kishan, who has not been taking part in any competitive cricket since December last year, has bypassed the Ranji Trophy citing inadequate preparation. Incidentally, he was part of India’s squad for the tour of South Africa but had to withdraw midway citing mental fatigue from extensive travel. Subsequently, the BCCI and Indian team management were not clear about his availability and head coach Rahul Dravid was categorical in his appeal that Kishan would only be considered for selection upon resuming competitive cricket. The left-hander has not been a part of Jharkhand’s Ranji Trophy fixtures, either. The report in Dainik Bhaskar also added that Kishan took a break from cricket to spend time with his family. As of now, he is training alongside the Pandya brothers in Vadodara, with a recent video of his practice session circulating on social media. Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan, too, was not very pleased with the way the entire episode played out. On X, earlier this week, he said that he was “perplexed" with the player’s unavailability.

Finding it perplexing how someone can be fit enough to practice but not play domestic cricket. How does this even make sense?

— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) February 10, 2024

India are currently playing a five-match Test series against England. This is their international cricket ahead of the T20 World Cup in June. The board has also announced the squad for the remaining three Tests of the series . While Virat Kohli continues to be absent due to personal reasons, KL Rahul too has been ruled out with an injury. KS Bharat and Dhruv Jurel are the two wicket-keeper batsmen in the squad. According to different reports, the selectors could opt for Jurel instead of Bharat as the wicket-keeper for the third Test in Rajkot.