'Ishan Kishan has been picked on his potential' - Rahul Dravid backs young batter after dismal WI series

After having a disappointing home series against West Indies, Indian coach Rahul Dravid has extended his support towards Ishan Kishan saying that he won’t be judged on a few games. The 23-year old batter opened the innings for Men in Blue in all three matches of the T20I series, but could only manage to score just 71 runs at an average of 23.66.

With only eight months left for the all important 2022 T20 World Cup, team India is looking to find perfection in team combination while providing ample opportunities to youngsters.  Talking about the experimentation, head coach Dravid said the youngsters would not be judged on one series or one bad game.

Team India will now be playing against Sri Lanka in a three match T20I series starting from January 24.  Men in Blue have mostly retain the same squad which played against Men in Maroon, apart from the inclusion of pacer Jasprit Bumrah and left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja.

We like to give the players confidence in the group in and around the squad, says Rahul Dravid

“This is a tough format. We are asking them to play high-risk cricket. We’re asking them to play shots all the time. And we don’t judge them on a few games. It’s not the way, it’s done. We try to give people as much as possible consistent runs. We’re trying to give them opportunities to play and not judge them on a game to game basis or on one series,” coach Dravid was quoted by Hindustan Times

Backing Kishan, Dravid said, “Ishan has been picked on his potential, his performance. Yes, you cannot specify this many games. Sometimes it’s combination, sometimes it’s injuries.”

“Never always give a player the same number of games, there cannot be a written number in stone whether it’s seven or six matches. Whether it’s Ruturaj Gaikwad or Avesh Khan today. We are not judging them on one game. They’re here because they perform and deserve to be here,” he added.