Indian wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan marked his comeback to domestic cricket for Jharkhand against Madhya Pradesh in the ongoing Buchui Babu Tournament at the India Cements Limited Cricket Ground in Tiruvenuli's Sankar Nagar on Thursday, August 15.
After refusal to play a couple of Ranji Trophy matches for his state team in the last season, Ishan Kishan lost his BCCI central contracts for player as he didn't adhere to the board's direction to play domestic cricket in order to make his return to the Indian team. However, the left-handed batter opted to train with Pandya brothers - Krunal and Hardik Pandya at Kiran More Academy ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024.
Kishan's decline to play in the latter stages of the Ranji Trophy campaign last season prevented him from making a comeback into the Indian team. The 26-year-old is eyeing to make a comeback into the Indian team for the upcoming home series against Bangladesh.
In the ongoing Buchui Babu Tournament, the first-class cricket competition, Ishan Kishan is leading Jharkhand and has already shown a significant impact behind the stumps. In a video that went viral on social media, Ishan can be seen taking a sharp catch behind the stumps.
Ishan Kishan's last appearance for Team India in international cricket was in the T20I series against Australia in November 2023. Kishan was added in the Test and T20I squad against South Africa. However, the wicketkeeper-batter pulled out of the series due to mental fatigue for continuous travel over the last one year.
Despite the BCCI secretary Jay Shah directed certain players to play domestic cricket to get selected into Indian squad, Ishan Kishan decided not to play the Ranji Trophy games last season, instead started training for IPL 2024. Therefore, Ishan Kishan, alongside Shreyas Iyer, were removed from the central contracts for players.
Ishan Kishan's Jharkhand in commanding position on Day 1
Ishan Kishan-led Jharkhand team were in the commanding position at the end of Day 1 as they restricted Madhya Pradesh to 225/8 in 89.5 overs. Vivekanand (2/25) and Aditya Singh (2/29) were the star bowlers of the day for Jharkhand as they picked two wickets each.
For Madhya Pradesh, Shubham S Kushwah led the batting with an innings of 84, while Arham Aquil contributed with 57. Shubham and Arham were the only players to score half-centuries for Madhya Pradesh on Day 1.
When Jharkhand begin their first innings batting, all eyes will be on Ishan Kishan as he will look to make an impact in order to get selected into the India squad for the upcoming home series against Bangladesh.
