"Tereko jo man hai vo kar, mai nahi bolunga kuch!" - What Virat Kohli told Ishan Kishan after he went against the skipper's advice on T20I debut

Ishan Kishan has shared an amusing story from his T20I debut against England. Kishan said during his quickfire half-century in the game, Virat Kohli, who was at the non-striker's end, had advised him to carefully play Tom Curran's first few deliveries.

But the youngster thought otherwise, disregarded the suggestion and dispatched Curran's first ball for a six. This prompted Kohli to submit to Kishan's spunk and carefree nature, telling him to do "whatever he wanted".

In an interaction with Aakash Chopra on his YouTube channel, Ishan Kishan said:

"When Tom Curran came in to bowl he told me that a new bowler has come to bowl, you can be watchful for a couple of deliveries. But somewhere I felt it's the first ball so he might now put that much effort and I hit it for a six. I played against of what he said and he them came to the middle of the pitch and said, 'Tu apna hi khel, tereko jo man hai vo kar, mai nahi bolunga kuch' (You play your way, do whatever you want, I won't say anything) [chuckles]."

Ishan Kishan hit a 32-ball 56 in that game as an opener. His knock, and a partnership of 94 runs with Virat Kohli, helped India chase 166 within 18 overs to win the second match of the five-game series against England.

The southpaw also revealed the story behind his first-ball four in the game, against the express pace of Jofra Archer. He said he was nervous at first about the expectations, but Virat Kohli calmed him down and exuded some confidence. Ishan Kishan stated:

"When I was going in, obviously I was a bit nervous about my family watching at home, people's expectations and them seeing Dhoni bhai in me. There were a lot of things. But when I went in to face my first ball, Virat bhai was batting in front of me and the atmosphere he had created out there... on the first ball he didn't ask me to 'enjoy' or anything."

The youngster added:

"Archer was bowling and I still remember he said 'Agar ye pehla ball patke toh ise maar us taraf' (If he bowls a bouncer on the first ball, hit him for a boundary!). So actually, the nervous mindset I had was automatically changed because from being in a survival mode I went to thinking about hitting a bouncer to the boundary."

"Virat Kohli bhai made me feel like I was playing for a long time in the team" - Ishan Kishan

Ishan Kishan further said that the conversations with Virat Kohli on his international debut made him feel at home right away in the Indian team. The 23-year-old concluded:

"I feel Virat bhai made me feel very comfortable and the way he talked to me, it felt like I was playing for a long time in the team and I have this image of a big-hitter."

While the Indian skipper is playing a five-Test series in England, Ishan Kishan is at home, preparing for the second half of the IPL 2021 in September.