Happiest moment of my career: Ishan Kishan after leading Jharkhand to SMAT 2025 triumph

Ishan Kishan couldn’t control his emotions. As his team-mates waited patiently to lift their maiden Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy title on Thursday, Ishan kissed the trophy, looked up in the sky and hugged Saurabh Tiwary and Shahbaz Nadeem – two former cricketers, who are now administrators at Jharkhand State Cricket Association.

In his long cricketing career, Ishan has witnessed several heartbreaks, but by his own admission, the title win was the happiest moment of his career. “It is definitely the happiest moment, because we have never won domestic tournaments under my captaincy. And, this was something where you had to prove yourself,” he told  Sportstar.

“There are times when you doubt yourself but when you win it, it’s all done and you know what quality you have, what changes you can do to your game, how you can turn the game around. Now, I have more trust in myself, more belief in my batting…”

Out of the national reckoning since 2023, Ishan amassed 517 runs in the tournament, and led from Jharkhand from the front. While he could bring the best out of the players, it was also a platform for the wicketkeeper-batter to prove himself as the national selectors closely monitored his performances.

“When I was not selected in the Indian team, I felt quite bad because I was doing well. But I told myself that if I am not selected with this sort of performance, then maybe I have to do more. Maybe I have to make my team win. Maybe we have to do well as a unit,” he said.

That approach worked wonders. “I was doing a lot of work on my batting. So, I have a good idea of my game as well, and where I am going wrong. So, it was about trusting myself and improving the game,” he added.

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While Ishan had a smile on his face while talking about that phase in 2023 when he was dropped from the Indian team on ‘disciplinary grounds’, he admitted that things were difficult. “It’s important that you don’t allow the frustration to get to you. This is my message to all the youngsters – frustration is something that will take you one step down, but at the same time, you need to put in a lot of hard work and believe in yourself and just focus on what you need to achieve,” he said.

This mindset helped him overcome the odds. And, as the T20 World Cup nears, Ishan isn’t thinking much about his selection. “I know you fancy your chances a lot of times. And when you don’t see your name, you just feel bad about it. So, I’m not in that zone anymore. I’m not expecting anything,” he said with a smile, before adding: “But my job is to just keep performing…”

During the challenging times, the support of his family got him going. “I think I have got pretty tough genes. My family was confident that I would bounce back no matter what…”

While he focused on his game and fitness, one of the iconic dialogues from the superhit film ‘ Baahubali’ motivated him. “There was a dialogue which said, ‘Wherever a king goes, he remains a king.’ So, that is the simple thing. Wherever you are, in whatever situation, you shouldn’t stop believing in yourself…” he said, before joining the team-mates to celebrate the iconic moment.

Published on Dec 18, 2025