During the Test series against West Indies, the Indian team management decided to give opportunities to fresh talents, leading to Test debuts for Yashasvi Jaiswal, Mukesh Kumar, and Ishan Kishan. Ishan Kishan had previously represented India in limited-overs formats. With Rishabh Pant unavailable due to his recovery from a car crash last year, Kishan has been given multiple chances and is being considered as an option for the aggressive batsman-wicketkeeper role. However, he has struggled to make a significant impact with the bat so far.
In the first Test, Kishan took considerable time to find his rhythm, and in the opening innings of the second Test, he started well but was dismissed for 25 after facing 37 deliveries. The dismissal occurred when he attempted a big shot off a short of a length delivery by Jason Holder, and he ended up giving a catch to the keeper. India’s cricket legend, Zaheer Khan, expressed his disappointment with Kishan’s approach.
“He started the knock well. So he will be extremely disappointed because once you have played 30-40 deliveries and scored 25 runs, you have gotten your eye in. In Test matches, it is said that it is not a problem if you get out at the start,” Zaheer commented.
“However, if you get out like this, especially the shot he played, the T20 or white-ball effect was seen in that, so he will be disappointed with that because he had an excellent opportunity to play a good knock today.”
The day’s play was affected by turgid rain interruptions, with West Indies reaching 229 for five in response to India’s first-innings total of 438 at stumps. Although the cricket wasn’t electrifying, the home side focused on survival and avoiding a repeat of their three-day innings defeat in Dominica.
Kraigg Brathwaite’s innings of 75 exemplified the home side’s purposeful but unattractive approach as they aimed to recover from their previous defeat.
