Ishan Kishan loses cousin in car accident on the sidelines of T20 World Cup final, makes painful confession after win

After India's emphatic 96-run win in the T20 World Cup final against New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday, Kishan revealed that he had to battle adversity a day before the summit clash as tragedy struck. The 27-year-old who plays for Jharkhand in domestic cricket, revealed that he lost his cousin sister in a car accident a day before the grand finale.

Kishan, who scored a half-century in the final, dedicated the win to his cousin sister on the day, which happened to be International Women's Day. The left-handed batter revealed that he spoke to his close friend and teammate Hardik Pandya, and it was he who told him to focus on the T20 World Cup final and put the team ahead.

It is worth noting that Kishan earned his place back in the T20I squad before the World Cup during the five-match series against New Zealand. He came back into the side following Jharkhand's Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy win under his captaincy. Kishan then stunned one and all in the matches against New Zealand, even hitting a century in the final T20I. His performance was so great that incumbent opening batter Sanju Samson lost his place in the playing XI.

Kishan's great run

Kishan played all the games for India in the T20 World Cup, scoring 317 runs and finishing as the fourth-highest run-scorer in the tournament, only behind Sahibzada Farhan, Tim Seifert and Samson.

When asked about his mindset when he was not in the national team, Kishan cited Virat Kohli and said he stopped thinking about it because it was not in his control.

"I have stopped thinking too much. Just do your work and not think about the things which are not under your control, and that's what Virat (Kohli) bhai always did," said Kishan.

Kishan also revealed the conversation he had with India captain Suryakumar Yadav before the squad was picked for the T20 World Cup.

“When Surya bhai called, I took a screenshot and thought it was for the World Cup. He called and asked WC jeetwayega kya. I asked, 'Aap bharosa karoge kya?' and I said, 'Karoonga.' He said chal kiya,” he added.

Click here to read article