Although Ishant Sharma cannot be categorized as a bowler who can bat but he still has his methods of surviving at the crease and supporting the batter at the other end if there is one, or just blocking and tiring the bowlers and waiting for his opportunities to latch on to poor deliveries. But in the second Test during West Indies vs India in Kingston back in 2019, Ishant scored his first half-century in Test match cricket, and he recalled the funny conversation he had with then skipper Virat Kohli before the innings.
“Oh, that is a special one. Scoring my first 50 against the West Indies. I was very relaxed. I think that was in Jamaica. I was very relaxed, talking to Virat, putting my feet up on the table. And he said, what are you going to do? I said, I’m going to bat. I said, I’m going to score runs. He was laughing and said, “Abbey Jaa Na“. Obviously, being a Delhi boy, we played together since childhood. Under 17s, we started playing together. And then he said, go man, just stand there and play the ball. (Hanuma) Vihari will score runs,” said Ishant, speaking on a video posted by the Gujarat Titans on X(Formerly known as Twitter)
“Vihari and I were batting. And then he was asking, what should I do? I said, just keep on playing normal cricket. Do not worry, I would not throw my wicket. So, we built a partnership. And after 60 balls, I got tired,” he recalled.
“Then they (Indian captain etc) were saying, we are not going to declare. We want you to bat. And I am telling you guys, I never sweat that much. Even while bowling. How much I sweat after batting for 60 balls. So, it was a tough day for me after batting,” he added.
