IPL 2022: "I have never seen him like this" - Piyush Chawla on Ishan Kishan's form

Former Mumbai Indians leg-spinner Piyush Chawla has expressed worry over opener Ishan Kishan's recent form in IPL 2022. Chawla said he has never seen Ishan Kishan go "into a shell" where he's consuming a lot of balls but not scoring runs.

Mumbai's most expensive signing in the IPL 2022 auction, Ishan has seen a drastic dip in form after the first two matches in the season. The left-hander's last four scores read 8 (20), 0 (1), 13 (17), and 3 (6). He has struggled with timing and looked out of his depth against swing and seam of the new-ball.

Chawla also argued that Ishan Kishan's struggles are putting unnecessary pressure on the rest of the batting lineup, including his opening partner Rohit Sharma.

On Friday, the 33-year-old told ESPNCricinfo:

"See, whatever I've seen of Ishan, opening is his best slot because he plays his best cricket there. It is a phase that can happen with any batter. Although he made a good start in the first two matches, he has gone into a shell after that. I have never seen him like this. Either he gets out or scores runs. But here he's playing a lot of balls and not scoring runs either. So because of that, the entire batting unit come under pressure and Rohit has to cover that. Rohit is a type of batter who plays till the 14th-15th overs but when runs don't come from one end, he has to take risks which bring mistakes."

When asked how he'll want Ishan to play now that Mumbai is out of the qualification race, Chawla said the youngster needs to enjoy the moment and express himself at the crease, ignoring all pressure.

"I'll want him to play the way for which he has been selected in the team. He's anyway getting out, so he should, at least, go out there and express himself and play freely like he's known to do. It was fun to watch him bat in the first two matches but now he seems under a lot of pressure. He should just go and express himself and enjoy the moment."

Mumbai has suffered eight straight losses this season. Ishan Kishan and Rohit Sharma's struggles at the top of the order, combined with a papery bowling lineup, have resulted in the worst start to an IPL season by any franchise.

"You can't call it pressure" - Piyush Chawla on Jasprit Bumrah's form

It's not just Ishan Kishan's form that is a concern for Mumbai. Compounding the five-time champions' troubles is their ace bowler Jasprit Bumrah's lack of wickets (five from eight games).

Chawla doesn't think it's an issue of form or a failure to perform under pressure. Instead, he believes that opposition batters are playing him out and attacking the rest of the Mumbai bowling attack.

"You can't call it pressure. But if you talk about wickets... the opposition batters know that Jasprit Bumrah is the main bowler who'll take wickets. They think if they play out his four overs for 25-30 runs, they can rob the other bowlers. Then under pressure to take wickets, Bumrah also bowls loose balls which cost runs. Overall, the bowling unit looks clouded by too many issues."

Mumbai will now take on the second-placed Rajasthan Royals on Saturday, starting at 7:30 PM IST at the DY Patil Sports Academy.