Rahul Dravid clears air on Ishan Kishan’s non-selection for T20I against Afghanistan

India head coach Rahul Dravid has addressed the rumors regarding the non-selection of Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer. The non-selection of both players has created confusion among the fans. As reported by Cricbuzz, Kishan was disciplined for attending Kaun Banega Crorepati. On the other hand, the selectors aren’t happy with Iyer’s struggles against the short ball.

However, Dravid has said, “Shreyas Iyer missed out due to lots of batters in the mix – no disciplinary actions, these are fake (news reports).” On Kishan, the former India skipper said that the wicketkeeper batter asked for a mental health break during the South Africa back.

On the other hand, as reported by The Indian Express, a source close to the former India U19 skipper requested a breaking during the white-ball series against Australia and South Africa. Kishan was keen to play the Test series against South Africa

“He told the team management that he had mental fatigue because he had been on the road continuously and wanted to spend time with his family back home. Instead, he chose to travel to Dubai and was seen partying,” a source in the know revealed.

Where is Ishan Kishan: Aakash Chopra

A few days back, former India cricketer Aakash Chopra raised questions about the exclusion of Kishan from the team.

“Iyer was nominated as the Vice-Captain for the 5-match T20i series vs Australia. Was a part of the squad against SA too. Now, finds no place in the team vs Afghanistan. Dubey was in the squad vs Aus at home. Wasn’t picked for SA. Back in the team vs AFG. Also, where is Ishan Kishan? Any news on his availability?,” Chopra wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

India’s Squad for 3 T20Is against Afghanistan: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan, Mukesh Kumar