Cricket fans got a rare glimpse into what happens in a huddle before a big match, after the BCCI released footage of East Zone captain Ishan Kishan rallying his troops ahead of the Duleep Trophy final against South Zone. In the video, the Jharkhand wicketkeeper-batter is seen telling his team that they hadn’t traveled to Chepauk merely to take part, he wanted them to leave their mark on the game.
And that’s precisely what happened. East Zone put on a dominant batting display on Sunday, with Ishan Kishan himself leading from the front with an unbeaten century off 135 balls. Veteran batter Abhimanyu Easwaran and young sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi complemented each other perfectly during a hundred-run stand, before 21-year-old Shikhar Mohan chipped in with a strong knock in the eighties. Ishan Kishan and fellow wicketkeeper Kumar Kushagra, who also finished unbeaten in the sixties, helped the team close the day at 385 for the loss of four wickets.
In his pre-match address, Ishan Kishan told his teammates that they’d shown real character throughout the tournament and had played good cricket across their first two matches. With the final now upon them, he urged the team to raise their game one more time, reminding them that even though it was the last match, the goal was to win it, not simply show up. He spoke about the tough conditions ahead, the heat, the five-day format and various other challenges and stressed the importance of maintaining the same energy and character throughout. He also asked the fielders to fully back the bowlers and support them as a unit.
Here is the video clip:
https://x.com/BCCIdomestic/status/2096627725964661125
Click to watch this video directly on X
Captaincy appears to be bringing out the best version of Ishan Kishan, who not long ago led Jharkhand to their first-ever Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy title. This glimpse into his team talk offers some insight into his approach as a leader.
He closed his message by telling the team to focus on doing everything right from the very start and not worry about the outcome, insisting that if they took care of the process, the result would follow.
That is certainly good leadership from Ishan Kishan!
