‘Rohit Sharma is still pretty terrifying’ – Ish Sodhi picks India great among toughest batters to bowl to [Exclusive Interview]

He has been a key part of New Zealand’s bowling attack across formats, while also establishing himself as a regular presence in T20 franchise cricket around the world. The leg-spinner has picked up 58 wickets in 21 Tests, 64 wickets in 54 ODIs and 165 wickets in 142 T20Is, underlining his experience at the international level.

Excerpts from the interview

Facing India—what’s one Indian batsman who still gives you butterflies before you bowl to him?

“I don’t know about butterflies, like in terms of, you know, butterflies is kind of  what you get when you ask a girl out that you really like for the first time. But in terms of nerves, I mean, the batters these days that are really, really tough to bowl to, I think, you know, it feels like there’s a plethora of left handers that are coming out of India in the top orders of their T20 batting lineups.But Abhishek Sharma is pretty daunting to bowl to at the moment. His swing path is so strong.  He hits the ball for six for fun all around the ground, and he’s super intentful from ball one.So he’s right up there. But I think if you look at, you know, the absolute legends of the game, Rohit Sharma is still pretty terrifying to bowl to, I think. Quite a daunting task.You know, I saw him recently, you know, batting at his best and he’s 39 years old. So he’s definitely one in white ball cricket that’s really tough too. I don’t really want to bowl to Suryavanshi. He looks tough. I mean, that guy looks like he could be the best player that’s ever lived.”

You’ve played under different captains and in various T20 leagues around the world. Who do you think is tactically more brilliant and why? 

“I’ve been really fortunate to play under many captains in my career. I think it’s really hard to go past Brendan McCullum. For me, I think, you know, in terms of that tactical awareness is one thing, you know. I think most of the captains that I’ve played under are pretty tactically aware. But I suppose it was Brendon McCullum had that ability to really lead the group, you know.  And it made me feel like, you know, I had an extra limb and maybe that was something that I saw with, you know, youthful eyes because he was my captain when I was, you know, around 20 to 22, 23 years old. So in terms of tactical captaincy, I think Kane Williamson’s got to be the best tactical captain I’ve ever played under, probably reflective in the way that he batted in his career really takes the time to understand opposition conditions, and adapt. So tactically, he’s got to be number one. But I suppose, you know, Brendan McCullum’s right up there with one of the best captains I’ve played under too.”