Mental Fatigue Reason Behind Ishan Kishan Withdrawing Name From South Africa Tests: Report

Wicketkeeper batter Ishan Kishan opted out of the South Africa tour due to personal reasons recently. The flamboyant wicketkeeper, who last played for India in the T20I series against Australia, was picked in the T20I and Test series for South Africa. According to a report on Indian Express, Ishan decided to opt out of the series due to mental fatigue.

The southpaw has been travelling with the Indian team for the past few months but didn’t get consistent chances due to the team combination. He was part of the ODI World Cup squad but only played the first two matches when Shubman Gill was recovering from dengue.

Meanwhile, the report in the Indian Express stated that he requested the team management to get a break from cricket for some time.

“He informed the team management that he is having mental fatigue and wants a break from cricket for some time. Everyone agreed to it,” a source confirmed to the paper.

Earlier, the young star cited personal reasons to skip the series which is going to be part of the World Test Championship.

The All India Selection Committee named KS Bharat as his replacement for the crucial series.

“Mr Ishan Kishan has requested the BCCI to be released from the upcoming Test series against South Africa citing personal reasons. The wicket-keeper has subsequently been withdrawn from the Test squad,” the BCCI stated in the press release.

Ishan made his Test debut this year on the West Indies tour, where he played two Test matches and scored a half-century in the second. The southpaw didn’t get a chance to play in the T20I series, while he was not picked for the ODI squad.

The first Test match of the series will begin from December 26 at SuperSport Park, Centurion. While, the second Test against the Proteas will start at Cape Town on January 3, 2024. India have not won a Test series on South African soil and they will look to end the drought this time.

India’s squad for Tests: Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Ruturaj Gaikwad, KL Rahul (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Prasidh Krishna, KS Bharat (wk).