Ish Sodhi reveals the reason behind 'choosing silence' after his maiden IPL wicket

New Zealand’s decorated spinner Ish Sodhi made his debut in the Indian Premier League (IPL) during the 2018 edition for the 2008-champion Rajasthan Royals.  Interestingly, the leg-spinner named his national skipper Kane Williamson as his maiden wicket. Though RR lost that match against Sunrisers Hyderabad by 11 runs, the game holds a special place for Sodhi.

Picking the wicket of a legend like Williamson is nothing less than a dream for any bowler across the globe. However, Sodhi didn’t show any excitement or celebration after scalping Kane, who was batting on 63 off 43 balls. The 28-year-old finally revealed the reason behind his silence after picking his maiden wicket in the IPL. 

In a YouTube interaction on the channel ‘The Grade Cricketer’, the tweaker reckoned that he played safe by not sledging his national captain. Sodhi revealed that he had three options at his disposal including, sledging in Punjabi, English, or maintaining the silence.

“I had got three options there (to sledge Kane Williamson). I speak Punjabi pretty well. I obviously speak English and silence. I chose silence because he was my captain for a long time and is my captain currently. So I used silence. We ended up losing the game, but it was really nice to get a guy like Kane (Williamson) out.

“He plays spin bowling so well and sometimes when we are bowling we feel like he is batting with a pillow in hand and you are imparting zero revs on the ball. So, it was really great to get him out,” Sodhi further added, praising Williamson’s batting.

Kane, overall, is a great captain and a great leader: Ish Sodhi

Further in the interaction, Sodhi detailed his opinion on Williamson’s captaincy style. The leg-spinner lauded the Kiwis’ skipper saying that Kane leads by example and is a cool and composed customer of the game. Further, Sodhi also praised vice-captain Tim Southee saying that he is a phenomenal leader who is passionate on the cricket field.

“It is really fair to say that he leads by example. He comes across as quite calm and composed and that’s the way that he leads as well. I think we are quite lucky to have a variety of different leaders. We have got guys like Tim Southee, who will come in and be vice-captain or be T20 leader. 

“I think he is a phenomenal leader in his own right. He is the guy, who will come in there and grab you by the shoulder and tell you that, ‘come guys, we can do it’. Kane, on the other hand, is nice and calm. It creates a nice balance. Kane, overall, is a great captain and a great leader. But these different leadership styles complement each other,” Sodhi explained.