Ishan Kishan has undergone a meteoric rise over the past few months, transforming from a player on the fringes of the Indian setup to a central figure in both national and franchise cricket. Once stripped of his central contract and battling for relevance, Kishan reignited his career with a scintillating performance at the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, where he smashed two centuries and led Jharkhand to the title. That blistering form forced selectors to reconsider him ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup, resulting in a last-minute inclusion over established names like Shubman Gill and Jitesh Sharma.

He repaid the faith in full, emerging as one of India’s key performers. Kishan played pivotal knocks against Pakistan in the marquee group stage clash and was instrumental in the final against New Zealand, amassing 317 runs throughout the tournament — just four shy of Player of the Tournament Sanju Samson — at an astonishing strike rate of 193.29. His dominance isn’t isolated to the World Cup; since IPL 2025, Kishan has accumulated 1,049 runs in 23 T20 innings, maintaining an average of 47.68 and a staggering strike rate of 202.11.

Now, that purple patch has earned him leadership responsibilities at the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). With Pat Cummins sidelined due to a back stress fracture, the franchise needed a stand-in captain, and Kishan’s recent form and experience made him the natural choice.

"I think it started last year where we obviously added a senior player to the group and the leadership that he exuded throughout that first season, particularly in the back-half when he took over the wicketkeeping, it really brought energy to the group," said SRH head coach Daniel Vettori ahead of their IPL opener in Bengaluru. "So when Patty [Cummins] was unfortunately out of the initial stage of the tournament, we obviously had some decisions to make and his experience with his state team in particular had been so impressive and then obviously he was in really good form. So between Abhishek [Sharma, interim vice-captain] and himself, we feel like we've got a really good leadership group to lead us this year. "

Cummins remains a critical figure for SRH, not only as their pace spearhead but also as captain. However, his return timeline remains cautious. Having played only one competitive match — the Adelaide Ashes Test — since July of the previous year, the Australian has been gradually rebuilding his bowling workload following medical clearance from Cricket Australia.

"It's always a challenge when you take out that integral part of your team as captain and fast bowler," Vettori acknowledged. "But I think we've got suitable replacements and I know Ishan is incredibly excited about being captain of the team and we can lean on Pat the whole time until he's actually able to play. "

The coach emphasized that Cummins’ fitness is not in question — in fact, it's exceptionally high due to dedicated strength and conditioning work during his layoff — but the focus now is on safely increasing his bowling load.

"The only challenge for him was the bowling loads and so once he got the all clear from Cricket Australia to build those bowling loads, it's obviously a bit of a painstaking process to get the loads up to where he feels confident and strong about bowling," Vettori explained. "But fitness is good, it's just the bowling loads now so over the course of the next couple of weeks he'll keep building and hopefully we can get a definitive timeline, probably in the next 10-12 days around when he can return to play."

As Kishan steps into the leadership role, the spotlight shines brighter than ever. Leading SRH in Cummins’ absence is not just a reward for form — it’s a statement of trust in his maturity, mindset, and ability to inspire a team during a transitional phase. For now, Cummins waits in the wings, guiding from the sidelines, while Kishan takes full charge on the field.