Ishan Kishan credits captaincy for 'immense personal growth'

East Zone captain Ishan Kishan has credited captaincy for “immense personal growth and situational awareness”. The southpaw highlighted how leadership sharpens awareness and instils a deeper sense of responsibility in a player.

"When you are the captain of the team, the first thing [you develop] is situational awareness," Kishan was quoted as saying by Cricinfo after scoring 270 off 334 balls in the Duleep Trophy final against South Zone at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. "You have to stay alert the entire day on the field to understand what is happening and what isn't. You have to take care of all your team-mates. There are so many small things we often overlook in our daily routines - you don't look at your players or try to help them figure out how they can get better. But when you are the captain, it becomes your duty to help them."

Kishan said captaincy also has a calming influence and brings a shift in mindset. The 28‑year‑old led Jharkhand to their maiden Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy title in December last year and also captained Sunrisers Hyderabad at the start of IPL 2026 while Pat Cummins worked his way back to full fitness.

"You will have to take responsibility. If you don't take it now, when will you? It's not like I am 22 years old and have just broken into the team. Going through this whole [leadership] process leads to immense personal growth, and while you might not realise it immediately, your mindset shifts completely, and you become much calmer about things."

Kishan also took a cheeky dig at teammate Shikhar Mohan, who scored a brilliant 85 before chopping a short delivery from left‑arm seamer CV Milind onto his stumps and missing out on a century.

Citing the moment when Mohan apparently ignored his advice to avoid the pull shot, Kishan said: "Did he even listen to me? I told him not to play the pull shot; he played it anyway, and got out," Kishan mentioned. "I told him not to take undue risks. When you're playing a final why throw it away?

"Still, my job was to guide him. He is a young player making his debut here. He plays Ranji, but a Duleep Trophy final is a massive platform - there are cameras, media, selectors watching, and everyone's eyes are on you, so the pressure is real. If you're set in the middle and batting fluently, why not score a hundred in these big games? Converting starts is a habit and I feel that's an area where our East Zone set-up has lagged - we never really built that culture."

Meanwhile, East Zone have posted a mammoth 708 in the first innings and are well‑placed to clinch the title unless South Zone manage to overhaul their total.