Reports | Injury sidelines Ishan Kishan for Duleep Trophy opening match

ByDebayan Sinha, SportsCafe Editor

09/04/2024

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Ishan Kishan is expected to be unavailable for the opening match of the upcoming Duleep Trophy 2024 tournament, scheduled to begin tomorrow in Anantapur. Although the exact reason for his absence remains unclear, but according to reports, it is suspected that he may be dealing with an injury.

‌According to a report by Cricbuzz, Ishan Kishan will not be participating in the opening game of the Duleep Trophy. The Jharkhand wicketkeeper was originally placed in Team D for the four-day match series, which is captained by Shreyas Iyer. However, reports suggest that Kishan has sustained an injury which forced him to withdraw from the match.

In his place, Sanju Samson, who was not initially named in any of the four teams announced by the selectors, is likely to be included. This development is a significant setback for the 26-year-old and his aspirations to secure a spot in India's Test squad for the upcoming home season, which includes five Tests against Bangladesh and New Zealand.

Kishan's availability for the remainder of the tournament will depend on his fitness and his selection for the Indian team for the two-match Test series against Bangladesh. Given his slim chances of making the Test team, Kishan may still have an opportunity to participate in the later rounds of the Duleep Trophy.

All four teams in the Duleep Trophy will play three matches, facing each of the other teams once. The second round is scheduled to begin on September 12, with Team D set to play its second match against Team A in Anantapur.

Kishan recently had a mixed performance in the Buchi Babu Invitational Tournament, where he captained Jharkhand. He started the tournament strongly, scoring 114 off just 107 balls in Jharkhand's opening-round victory over Madhya Pradesh. In the second innings, he added an unbeaten 41 off 58 balls to help his side secure a nail-biting win. However, in the second match of the tournament against Hyderabad, Kishan struggled, scoring just 1 and 5 across both innings. His poor performance contributed to Jharkhand's failure to reach the semifinals, leading to their elimination.

Kishan has been out of the national team since last year, with his last international appearance being a T20I against Australia in November 2023.