Ishan Kishan training with Hardik Pandya and Krunal in Baroda: Report

Ishan Kishan is currently training at the Kiran More Academy in Baroda in the company of India cricketers Hardik Pandya and Krunal, it was reported on Wednesday. The wicketkeeper-batter has not played for India since November 2023 and has not been a part of the national team setup since he was released from the Test squad in December 2023 due to personal reasons. Back then it was reported that Kishan wanted to be out of the India squad for a while due to mental fatigue as he wasn’t getting much game time despite travelling with the team regularly. The 25-year-old was, however, expected to return to competetive action in the ongoing Ranji Trophy to make a case for return to Team India. Kishan, however, has not played any Ranji Trophy match so far and is also not part of his team Jharkhand squad for the Haryana match that starts on 9 February in Jamshedpur. Cricbuzz has now reported that Kishan is in Baroda training alongside his IPL team Mumbai Indians captain Hardik. The news was confirmed to the website by former India cricketer Kiran More. With KS Bharat struggling to score runs, Kishan could have got a call back to Team India for the remaining three Tests against England, but it’s to be seen how selectors are going to respond as they are set to pick the squad soon. India coach Rahul Dravid was also asked about Kishan’s availability after the second Test at Visakhapatnam. He said: “I just don’t want to go on labouring about the Ishan Kishan point. Whenever he is ready, I didn’t say he has to play domestic cricket, I said whenever he is ready… he needs to play some cricket and come back. The choice is his. We are not forcing him to do anything. We are in touch with him. “We know what it is. He hasn’t yet started playing, right? At the moment, it’s not something that we would consider. He is maybe not ready. He decides when he wants to be ready.” Going by Dravid’s comments, it’s highly unlikely Kishan will comeback to the side without playing competetive cricket.