Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India], March 15 (ANI): England opening batsman Jason Roy on Monday said that he was not surprised to see how young batter Ishan Kishan performed in the second T20I of the five-match series at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
Kishan’s 56, along with an unbeaten 73 from skipper Virat Kohli, helped India chase down the 165-run target in the second T20I of the five-match series.
“It was just execution on the night, I think a couple of times we might have got the things wrong with the ball, he capitalised by hitting them for six whereas when I was opening, I probably missed out on the balls that should have gone for boundaries. It is just about making sure that you execute your skills really well,” said Roy in a virtual press conference on Monday.
“Ishan Kishan is a star player, he has done that for Mumbai Indians in the IPL numerous times. I was not surprised when I saw him kind of teeing off a bit, everyone knows he is a star player. Good on him,” he added.
With the win in the second T20I, the hosts levelled the five-match series 1-1. In the second T20I, India had decided to hand debuts to Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) also shared a video in which Yuzvendra Chahal interviewed Ishan after the match.
Ishan started off by saying: “It is a proud moment for any youngster to come and represent his country. I was very happy that I got this chance. The conversation I had before the match, with Virat Bhai, Hardik Bhai, everyone told me to just enjoy and before going out to bat you (Chahal) gave me tips about how to go about it and said ‘take time if you want to and just play freely as you played in the IPL’.”
Ishan didn’t raise his bat immediately after reaching his fifty and elaborating on the reason, he said: “I wasn’t nervous. Actually, I was not sure that I had reached my fifty and when Virat bhai told me ‘top innings’, then I realised. But generally, I do not raise my bat that much after hitting a half-century, maybe just once or twice. But then I heard Virat bhai’s voice from behind ‘Oye, charo taraf ghoom ke bat dikha, sabko bat dikha, pehla match hai tera’ (raise your bat in all directions, show your bat to everyone, it’s your first match).”
Reflecting on how it was to bat with Kohli, Kishan said: “Initially, I was finding it difficult to match his (Kohli) level because the energy he shows after each boundary or a double, I had never experienced that.”
The third T20I between India and England will take place on Tuesday. (ANI)
