Star Indian batter Ishan Kishan is celebrating his 26th birthday today. The wicketkeeper batter has made a name for himself with his terrific batting performances in IPL as well as international cricket. Kishan came into the limelight when he was appointed the U-19 captain for the 2016 edition of U19 World Cup.
It took him five years to make his senior level debut, but he finally received his maiden T20I cap ahead of a match against England at the Narendra Modi Stadium in 2021. In this article now, we will look at India’s playing XI from Kishan’s debut and where are they now.
Openers – KL Rahul and Ishan Kishan
KL Rahul had a forgettable T20I series against England in 2021. He got out for a duck in the second T20I, where Kishan made his debut. Debutant Kishan smashed a match-winning half-century, aggregating 56 off 32. Both Rahul and Kishan are active in all formats, but they have been dropped from T20I team.
Middle Order – Virat Kohli (c), Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya and Shardul Thakur
India played with four specialist batters and two all-rounders in the middle-order. Captain Kohli stole the show with an unbeaten 73. Meanwhile, Pant smacked a quickfire 13-ball 26. Iyer remained not out on eight. Debutant Yadav did not get a chance to bat. Pandya went for 33 runs in his four overs, while Thakur bowled an impressive spell of 2/29.
Kohli, Pant, Yadav and Pandya were a part of India’s T20 WC winning squad. Thakur and Iyer played in the 2023 CWC, but they are no longer first-choice picks in T20I format.
Bowlers – Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal and Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Washington Sundar and Yuzvendra Chahal were the two spinners in India’s playing XI for that game. Sundar bagged two wickets, while Chahal and fast bowler Kumar bagged one wicket each.
Only Chahal was present in India’s T20 WC 2024 winning squad, but even he did not play any matches. Kumar was dropped in 2022 and has not returned. Meanwhile, Sundar recently played against Zimbabwe.
