Ishan Kishan to open? What Virat Kohli told MI star after his selection in India's T20 World Cup squad

Mumbai Indians (MI) star Ishan Kishan was in splendid touch as he took the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) bowlers to the cleaners in his side's final league game of the IPL 2021 season on Friday (October 08). The left-hand wicket-keeper batsman slammed a brilliant knock of 84 runs off just 32 balls as he powered Mumbai Indians to their highest ever total of 235 runs against SRH.

Kishan opened the batting with captain Rohit Sharma at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in UAE and had come with the intent of taking on the bowlers from the word go. He wasted no time in launching an all-out attack against the SRH bowlers and gave MI a flying start.

After his stellar show as an opener against SRH, Kishan opened up on his chat with team India skipper Virat Kohli regarding his selection in the squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2021. Kishan, who was enduring a rough patch in IPL 2021 before finding his mojo back in the last couple of games, revealed Kohli supported him during his poor run with the willow and also gave him clarity about his role in the Indian side for the T20 World Cup.

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“I had a good chat with Virat bhai, Jasprit bhai also helped me. Hardik Pandya and Krunal Pandya also supported me. Everyone supported me and said this is a learning stage for me and make sure that I should learn from my mistakes here and not repeat it during the T20 World Cup,” Ishan said after his match-winning knock against SRH on Friday.

“Virat bhai told me ‘You are selected as an opener, you just have to be prepared for that. But at the bigger level, you need to be prepared for everything,” he added.

Kishan has been assured by captain Kohli that he has been selected in the World Cup squad as an opener in the absence of senior batsman Shikhar Dhawan, who was snubbed by the selectors. Kishan is likely to remain the backup opener in the side with Rohit and KL Rahul expected to be India's first-choice opener in the T20 World Cup in UAE this year.

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Nonetheless, Kishan's return to form will please Indian fans, who have high hopes from the youngster at the T20 World Cup this year. Known for his ability to destroy bowling attacks with his attacking batting, Kishan has played only ten games for MI this season and has notched up 241 runs, striking at 133.88.