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Flamboyant former Indian cricketer Navjot Singh Sidhu, who will return to the commentary box after a decade with the upcoming IPL, says the dazzling league would help decide the T20 World Cup squad not only for India but also from other countries. After a decade in the unforgiving world of politics, Sidhu and his ‘Sidhu-isms’ will be back on air starting with the IPL, which precedes the T20 World Cup in June.
“The IPL will set the tone for the World Cup. There is no other cricket going on. The eyes of the world are on the IPL. This is where you can get a place for the T20 World Cup, not just Indians, even foreign players.”, Sidhu told PTI in an interview facilitated by the official television broadcaster of the IPL, ‘Star Sports’.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, who have not played much T20 cricket since the 2022 edition, are expected to be on the flight to the US and the Caribbean for the ICC showpiece.
Do senior batsmen still add value to the T20 team? “They will be needed there. These are giants of the cricket world. The form is like the morning dew, it may elude you, but the class of these people has a stamp of authority.
“I would rate Kohli as the best Indian batsman for the simple reason of his fitness. He is improving with age like old wine does. Technically he is very sound and has the uncanny ability to adapt to all three formats, same goes for Rohit.”, Sidhu explained in his inimitable style.
“Both of them are quality players. I’m not sure about Rohit’s fitness level. With age you tend to slow down, your reflexes tend to fail. Sehwag with those glasses, his reflexes were not the same, I saw it in the IPL.” Sidhu closely followed India’s ODI World Cup campaign last year, where the hosts finished runners-up after being the only unbeaten team in the group stage. The final defeat extended his long wait for a world title, but Sidhu is not too worried.
“In the recent World Cup they played very well, they only had one bad match, a bad match cannot evaluate the luck of a team. I see that the Indian team leads the way for a long time because the system that produces cricketers is very pleasant and favorable.
“In my time, people kept going despite poor form because there were no replacements. Now, Hardik Pandya replaces the Indian captain as captain in Mumbai Indians because he has performed so well.
“It’s not that I’m derogatory to Rohit, but it’s just a thought process. The old order must change and give way to the new,” Sidhu said.
There are multiple options for the wicketkeeper-batsman spot in the World Cup squad with players like Ishan Kishan, Rishabh Pant, Sanju Samson and KL Rahul in the running.
Sidhu said he would pick someone who had superior keeping skills and his batting prowess was “secondary”.
He will take feedback like a fish to water.
It has been a while since the 60-year-old held the microphone, but three days after his ‘first’ return as a commentator, the former India opener was as fired up as ever.
“Boss, cricket is my first love. If your hobby becomes your profession, there is nothing better than that. A duckling would never forget how to swim, I will take feedback like a fish in water.”
When asked if sense of humor kept him active during the turbulent phases of his life, Sidhu said: “The secret of my life is that I switch on and off. It was difficult for me to disconnect from politics, but then the age of Los Miracles have not happened, the difficult is done at once, the impossible takes a little longer.
“Mental strength will get me through any situation now. In cricket, I have come back about 20 times, this is my first comeback to commentary. I was in the swing of things from 1999 to 2014-15 (commentary).
“A gem cannot be polished without friction nor a man perfected without testing,” Sidhu continued, as only he can.
In the early years of the IPL, Sidhu provided the
The money was much more than he could earn as an established cricketer in India, but Sidhu said he was never in it for much money.
“I left cricket and joined commentary and I didn’t know if this was something I could do. I wasn’t very confident (at first), but 10 or 15 days after the World Cup, the word Sidhuism came up. I was walking around a street. There was no one walking, it was the path of Sidhuism.
“From Rs 60 to Rs 70 lakh throughout the tournament, I was earning Rs 25 lakh a day in IPL. The satisfaction was not the money, the satisfaction was that time would fly. It was beautiful.”
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated channel.)
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