My father said ‘Test has the real challenges’: Ishan Kishan recalls moment of his maiden Test call-up

New Delhi: Young wicketkeeper batter Ishan Kishan, who was given his maiden call-up to the Test team for the first two matches against Australia, has recalled the moment when he revealed this news to his father.

Speaking of his maiden Test call-up and excitement to play red-ball cricket in a conversation with Shubhman Gill, Kishan revealed that when he broke the news of his Test call, his father said, “Test has the real challenges. You have to work hard like this”.

“I am very happy. Whenever I was doing well in white-ball cricket my father used to say that Test cricket is the real deal. He says that Test has the real challenges, it tests the skills of batters and it is a big thing to play Test cricket,” Ishan revealed in a video posted by the Board of Control for Cricket (BCCI) on Twitter.

“I am very happy to make it to the Test team, because people perceive it as the real game. I will try hard to do well. I called home and told them the news. My dad was hyped up and told me to work hard like this,” he added.

Last month, the 24-year-old entered the record books after scoring a scintillating 210 off 131 deliveries against Bangladesh and paved his way to the illustrious list of double centurions in ODI cricket that includes Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Rohit Sharma, Chris Gayle, Martin Guptill and Fakhar Zaman. His knock was also the fastest double-century in ODI cricket.

India will play four-match Test series against Australia at home, with the first Test scheduled to take place in Nagpur from February 9, followed by three-match ODI series, starting from March 17.

–IANS