World Cup: Should Ishan Open Batting?

Former Australian pacer Brett Lee believes Ishan Kishan should be one of the contenders to open the batting for India at the 2023 ODI World Cup.

Kishan smashed the fastest double century in ODIs, when he slammed a brilliant 210 from 131 balls during the third ODI against Bangladesh in Chattogram in December.

The young left-hander, who has been on the sidelines for several months, made the most of a rare opportunity when he replaced his injured India and Mumbai Indians Captain Rohit Sharma.

Ishan, who had earlier scored 93 against South Africa in Ranchi in October, has made a good start to 50-overs cricket with 477 runs in 10 matches at an average of 53 with a strike rate of 111.

'With this deadly double, Ishan has staked a strong claim to open for India in the ODI World Cup at home in 2023. Will this happen? I don't know. Should it happen? Hell yeah, it should. The guy just scored the fastest 200 in ODI history,' Lee said on his YouTube channel -- Brett Lee TV.

Ishan could replace K L Rahul, who struggled in both the ODI and Test series in Bangladesh, leading calls to his exclusion from the Indian team.

Lee wants Ishan to focus on his fitness and consistency. 'My advice to Ishan Kishan would be to forget about the milestone, forget about the double hundred as soon as you can. There are bigger milestones to achieve, higher peaks to scale.'

'Ishan Kishan has to forget about the euphoria of his double hundred. Just focus on the process stay fit and keep smashing big runs.'