The Jharkhand cricket team has officially appointed Ishan Kishan as their captain for the upcoming Ranji Trophy 2024-25 season. The team will kick off their campaign against Assam in Guwahati. Kishan’s appointment comes after a successful domestic season, where he represented Jharkhand in the Buchi Babu Trophy, India C in the Duleep Trophy, and the Rest of India in the Irani Cup.

Ishan Kishan’s return to domestic cricket

Kishan’s return to domestic cricket was a significant step towards his goal of making a comeback to the Indian team. His absence from the BCCI central contracts in February 2024 was a result of skipping domestic red-ball matches. BCCI secretary Jay Shah had emphasized the importance of domestic cricket as a benchmark for selection to the national squad, warning that skipping it could have serious consequences.

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Eyes on the Border-Gavaskar Trophy

Kishan is eager to make his mark in domestic cricket and secure a place in the Indian squad for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024. Those close to the star player believe that the BCCI secretary’s warning does not apply to him, as Kishan has always prioritized the Ranji Trophy. Despite a hectic schedule with the Indian cricket team in the 2022-23 season, he managed to play a couple of Ranji Trophy games and scored a century against Kerala, which ultimately helped him earn a place in India’s Test team.

Kishan’s setback in international cricket

However, Kishan’s journey has not been without its challenges. Despite performing admirably in the few opportunities he had, he has struggled to secure a regular berth in the Indian team across all three formats. His exclusion from the T20I squad against Afghanistan, even when opener Ruturaj Gaikwad was unavailable, was a significant setback.

A tough pill to swallow

Kishan has admitted that his exclusion from the team was a tough pill to swallow. He attributed his decision to take a break to travel fatigue and a need to regain his mental and physical well-being. Unfortunately, his decision was not fully understood by many outside of his inner circle.

“I was scoring runs and then I found myself on the bench. These things do happen in a team sport. But I experienced travel fatigue. It meant there was something wrong, I was not feeling well or right and so I decided to take a break. However, sadly, barring my family and few close people no one understood that,” Kishan told The Indian Express.

As Kishan continues to work hard and prove his worth in domestic cricket, his determination to make a comeback to the Indian team remains unwavering. With the Ranji Trophy as a platform to showcase his skills and leadership abilities, Kishan hopes to reignite his international career and once again don the Indian jersey.

Jharkhand Ranji Trophy squad for the first two matches

Ishan Kishan (c), Aryaman Sen, Sharandeep Singh, Kumar Suraj, Anukul Roy, Utkarsh Singh, Supriyo Chakraborty, Saurabh Shekhar, Kumar Kushagra (wk), Vikas Kumar, Nazim Siddique, Vivekanand Tiwary, Manishi, Ravi Kumar Yadav, Raunak Kumar, Virat Singh (vc).

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