Ishan Kishan Vs. Srikar Bharat: The Battle For India's Test Wicket-Keeper Spot On The West Indies Tour

In the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2021-23 cycle, Australia defeated India in the final. After that, India started a new cycle with a Caribbean tour. 

The Indian team, which Rohit Sharma leads, enjoyed a month's break after the defeat before returning to playing, especially at the international level.

Who Would Be Taking The Wicket-keeper Spot?

Currently, the Indian cricketer Rishabh Pant is still recovering from a car accident that he underwent in December. He is gradually starting to walk without support. 

Besides that, KL Rahul, the right-handed wicket-keeper, is also recovering from a thigh surgery. Hence, he can't be back for the rest of the year.

Therefore, this leaves the Indian team with two options for the wicket-keeping spot: Ishan Kishan and KS Bharat

KS Bharat

In the World Test Championship (WTC), KS Bharat was preferred over Ishan Kishan. Despite a decent performance against Australia, Bharat only scored 5 and 23 in London.

What isn't in favour of KS Bharat is that he is yet to record a fifty in the Test after making his debut in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Nagpur this year.

In the WTC Final, KS Bharat did impressively behind the stumps. Bharat got amazing catches during the match.

Ishan Kishan

For the WTC Final, Kishan was overlooked; however, his excellent batting talent makes him a preferred option to play XI in the first two tests.

Kishan is considered someone who can take bowling attacks, just like Rishabh Pant. Ishan Kishan represents Mumbai Indians and will enter the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru to train for the West Indies tour. 

It seems that Ishan Kishan and KS Bharat both might get one Test each in the series; however, the possibility of Kishan getting the approval before is higher.

Process Of Choosing Wicket-keepers

The procedure of choosing wicket-keepers is majorly based on glove work, which is their thing in history.

It is said that KS Bharat needs to enhance his batting skills in order to give Rishabh Pant some competition to become the first preference for the wicket-keeper position.

The Indian team needs to choose a player with excellent match-winning capabilities, and it seems that Ishan Kishan is a better fit for this position than KS Bharat for now.

FAQs
Who is currently playing the wicketkeeper spot for India? 
Ishan Kishan and KS Bharat are possible contenders for India's wicket-keeper spot.  
What is the process of choosing wicket-keepers for the Indian team? 
The wicket-keeper selection process is based on glove work and performance history.
Is Rishabh Pant still recovering from a car accident? 
Yes, Rishabh Pant is still recovering from a car accident he underwent in December.