Ish Sodhi picks all-time T20 XI, ignores MS Dhoni and Hardik Pandya [Exclusive]

New Zealand’s veteran leg-spinner Ish Sodhi recently picked his all-time T20 XI during an exclusive interaction with CricTracker. Sodhi has played 21 Tests, 54 ODIs, and 142 T20Is so far for the Black Caps. He is also an experienced campaigner when it comes to T20 cricket.

The 33-year-old has played 314 T20s, picked up 335 wickets at an average of 24.89 and a strike rate of 18.70. Despite being a wrist spinner, his economy rate is a decent 7.95. During his impressive career, Sodhi has played with and against some of the biggest players in the shortest format of the game.

He picked Chris Gayle and Rohit Sharma as his openers in the T20 format. The former is second on the list of leading run-getters in T20 cricket. Rohit, on the other hand, led India to the T20 World Cup title in 2024 and is also a five-time IPL-winning skipper. He also has the most runs by an Indian cricketer in T20I cricket.

Good friends, AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli, took the No. 3 and No. 4 spots, respectively, in Sodhi’s line-up. De Villiers is a former South African captain and a Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) legend. Meanwhile, Kohli needs no introduction as he is the highest run-getter in the IPL and second highest for India in T20Is.

Kieron Pollard, who recently surpassed Gayle’s record to become the leading run-getter in T20 cricket, grabbed the No. 5 spot. The 39-year-old might have retired from international cricket, but he is firing on all cylinders in franchise leagues around the world.

Jos Buttler and Andre Russell were picked for the finisher’s role at No. 6 and 7, respectively. While Buttler has the second-most centuries in the IPL, Russell is a two-time IPL Most Valuable Player (MVP) award winner.

In the spin-bowling department, there were no surprises whatsoever. Sodhi picked mystery spinner Sunil Narine at No. 8 and the talismanic leg-spinner Rashid khan at No. 9. Both of them have made batters dance to their tunes in international cricket as well as in franchise leagues.

Lastly, Sodhi picked Jasprit Bumrah and Josh Hazlewood as his two frontline pacers. Bumrah won the Player of the Tournament award when India won the 2024 T20 World Cup under Rohit’s captaincy. The former is also a multiple-time IPL winner. Josh Hazlewood, on the other hand, played crucial roles in the IPL in the last two seasons, as he helped the Royal Challengers Bengaluru become back-to-back champions.

Ish Sodhi’s All-time T20 XI:

Chris Gayle, Rohit Sharma, AB de Villiers, Virat Kohli, Kieron Pollard, Jos Buttler, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Rashid Khan Jasprit Bumrah, Josh Hazlewood.

Get every cricket updates! Follow Us: