The continued absence of Ishan Kishan from the Indian team setup has sparked a lot of rumours in the cricketing fraternity of late.
It all started ahead of the two-match Test series against South Africa, when Kishan asked the selectors to not pick him in the squad.
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Reports stated that the southpaw wanted to take a break from cricket due to mental fatigue, having travelled with the team so much inspite of not getting as many opportunities as he may have liked.
"Ishan Kishan has requested the BCCI to be released from the upcoming Test series against South Africa citing personal reasons. The wicketkeeper has subsequently been withdrawn from the Test squad. The men’s selection committee has named KS Bharat as a replacement,” BCCI secretary Jay Shah had stated in a press release.
Then, he was also not a part of the three-match T20I series against Afghanistan at home in January, which only added more speculation to the story.
The trend continued when Kishan was not picked up for the first two Tests against England, with KS Bharat and Dhruv Jurel selected as the wicketkeepers in the squad.
A new report, though, suggests a completely different story.
MORE: Will Ishan Kishan be considered for national team selection?
Ishan Kishan reportedly unhappy due to Jitesh Sharma
According to a report from RevSportz on Wednesday, February 7, Kishan was unhappy with Jitesh Sharma's inclusion in the playing XI as the wicketkeeper, which came at his expense.
The 25-year-old was a part of India's 2023 World Cup squad, but only featured in 3 of the team's 11 games at the marquee event.
In the ensuing T20I series against Australia at home, the Jharkhand player played three games out of five and scored two half-centuries.
2023 was a great year for Kishan, taking his game to the next level in both ODIs and T20Is in addition to making a long-awaited Test debut against West Indies in July.
In the T20I series against South Africa, Jitesh featured in the XI in all games, while Kishan couldn't make the cut in even a single game, which upset the latter.
Will Ishan Kishan be selected for India's Test squad vs England?
An announcement of the squads for the next three Tests against England is imminent, but it seems unlikely that Kishan will be a part of it.
“There’s a way back for anyone and everyone,” India head coach Rahul Dravid said in a press conference, referring to Kishan.
“It’s not that we rule out anybody from anything. I just don’t want to go on labouring the Ishan Kishan point. I’ve tried to explain it as best as I can. The point was that, you know, he requested a break. We were happy to give him the break and whenever he was ready… I didn’t say he has to play domestic cricket. I said, whenever he’s ready, he needs to play some cricket and come back, and the choice is his.
“We’re not forcing him to do anything, and we are in touch with him. It’s not that we’re not in touch. We know what it is, but he hasn’t yet started playing, right?”
Kishan hasn't been available for Jharkhand in the ongoing season of the Ranji Trophy. It is the only ongoing cricket competition apart from the India-England Tests. But Kishan hasn't communicated with the Jharkhand State Cricket Association at all.
Jharkhand, who have only triumphed once in their last five games, will play their final Ranji Trophy group stage match against Haryana in Jamshedpur on February 9.
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