Ishan Kishan has made headlines once more by delivering an unbeaten 94 in just 48 balls against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, only two innings after a remarkable 106 not out off 47 deliveries in the IPL. Such performances highlight his potential, though inconsistencies with the bat have weighed heavily on Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) this season. “That certainly impacted the SRH performance,” reflected Anil Kumble.
SRH’s struggles weren’t solely linked to Kishan. Travis Head failed to recreate last year’s success, and Heinrich Klaasen showed only flashes of his capability. While Abhishek Sharma provided some solidity, Kishan’s contribution at crucial junctures could have altered SRH’s fortunes.
Anil Kumble explained: “If your main batters are not in form, maybe when you don’t qualify for the playoffs you think about all these things.” His comments illuminate the broader struggles facing the team—they were left to ponder what might have been.
Kishan found himself in a rut throughout April, with scores like 44 and 35 taking far too many balls—34 and 28, respectively—falling short of his true potential. Yet, his innings on Friday brought back the Ishan of old. “Ishan played a very mature innings; he certainly held the innings together for us,” SRH’s Simon Helmot acknowledged in a press briefing.
Tom Moody gave his nod, recognising the enormity of Kishan’s task: “He was under a lot of pressure… he would have felt the fact that he has had a poor season… I think he’s made it very clear today that he is being retained, if there was any doubt.”
The SRH season has been bittersweet. Yet the team can draw some comfort from strong batting performances in their last two matches, scoring 231 for 6 against RCB and successfully chasing down 206 against Lucknow. “The last two matches, our batting performance has been very solid,” Helmot highlighted, crediting SRH’s ability to read the pitch conditions and produce results.
While it’s been a challenging campaign for SRH, Kishan’s renewed form is a silver lining, showcasing his capacity to be a cornerstone for the squad moving forward.
