Ranchi, Oct 8 (IANS) Having worked closely with Ishan Kishan for a long period, India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak appreciated the local lad’s growth as a much more mature and tactical match-winner ahead of India’s second T20I against West Indies, set to happen at the JSCA Ground in Ranchi on Friday.
Originally from Patna, Kishan plays domestic cricket for Jharkhand and is having a dream run in the shortest format – leading the run-making charts by amassing 1042 runs in 30 innings and becoming a T20 World Cup winner.
“As a batting coach, whichever ground Ishan plays in, he considers it his home ground. Actually, when he came back after the World Cup, he has been doing really well for the Indian team in any situation. When he was young, I saw him when I worked in the IPL, where he was in the Gujarat Lions setup.
“But even then, he used to play aggressively. If anything, I would say that he is much more mature now. So, he plays according to the needs of the team and the situation of the team, and he has been doing really well. So, we just hope that he does well on his home ground,” Kotak said in the pre-match press conference.
Reiterating India’s approach of an unrelenting and high-intensity version of playing the game, Kotak said that the pitch conditions in Ranchi will not impact the team’s attacking approach.
“I think the way we are approaching with the fearless and team-first approach – that’s the same way we’ll go. No matter, it might be a different wicket also, but in T20s generally we get a good wicket.
“So, that’ll be the same thing; the way we want to approach the T20s, we’ll continue. I think it’s a good batting wicket. So, it should be a high-scoring pitch. The team has not decided yet. So, I don’t know. Chances are for everyone in 15 to be in the 11,” he added.
On managing the workload and rotation of stars such as Jasprit Bumrah, who has been rested from the series, Kotak said that while it does impact results, overall the team’s strong bench strength helps to ensure that a balanced squad is maintained at all times to prepare for multiple international events.
“Obviously, because, see, some games we are not playing, and Bumrah has been given a rest. In some games, some other senior players are also not playing. So, obviously any team in the world will require bench strength, and somewhere and somewhere you have to give them chances. So, sometimes results do suffer, but normally I think we have enough strong bench strength that our results also don’t suffer as much,” he added.
Commenting on the issues raised regarding young pace bowler Mayank Yadav’s performance in the first game, where his batting returns were expensive, Kotak felt he will bounce back strongly.
“See, Mayank also played here after playing in Zimbabwe. Any bowler will feel that it will take certain matches to get rhythm. Obviously, any bowler or bowling coach and team management will think about where they gave runs or where the runs go or in which particular bowls did the runs go and then think of how they can cut off, whether it is length or pace or change of pace. So, that is a non-stop work that is going on,” he said.
Expanding on the issue of balancing the need for victories with nurturing young talent, Kotak praised the healthy pool of competitive players available for selection across multiple squads.
“To tell you the truth, when you test players and if you win, then it continues. If you lose, there is a very thin line between keeping that balance. But obviously, we try to do that because of the promising players that we have, the way the BCCI and CoE run, our bench strength; if two or three of our teams go, it looks strong.
“But when you give a chance to new players, some experienced players will miss out. So, if the other team plays well and there is a close match, that time you feel that it is a process, and whenever we get a chance, then we should give a chance to the young players for future bench strength,” he concluded.
–IANS
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