Ishan won’t bat below No. 3: Surya

Ishan Kishan seems to have pipped Sanju Samson in the choice for the second opener’s role in the Indian team in a battle of two wicketkeeper-batsmen ahead of their Group A tournament opener against USA at the Wankhede Stadium on Saturday.

When asked about Kishan’s recent performance and the possibility of his opening with Abhishek Sharma, captain Suryakumar Yadav sounded pretty impressed, even suggesting that he may not be batting below No. 3, if he plays. “The way he has played cricket in the last five T20s, it was an international game, so he did a lot. But if you look at the domestic cricket he was playing, the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 tournament (517 runs in 10 innings with two centuries and two fifties) he batted like this in that too. Whatever position he plays. He won’t play below 3, but whatever opportunity he gets, he will keep batting like this,” Suryakumar said.

While Samson has been struggling, managing only 46 runs in the five-match series against New Zealand before the T20 World Cup, Kishan has hit 215 runs in four innings at a strike rate of around 231. Kishan opened the innings against South Africa in the warm-up game, scoring a 20-ball 53 and tilting the scales firmly in his favour.