Chahal’s spin mesmerises Kiwi counterpart Sodhi on chess board
MUMBAI: New Zealand bounced back in style in the Rajkot T20 International as they registered a 40-run win to level the three-match series 1-1. Colin Munro’s ton coupled with some fine spells by New Zealand bowlers led to a comfortable win.
However, one clash has highlighted the vast gap between the two teams. And it is the clash of their legspinners, Yuzvendra Chahal and Ish Sodhi. Only this clash did not happen on the 22 yards, but on the 64 squares. As both teams took a chartered flight from Rajkot to Thiruvananthapuram, Sodhi took on Chahal in a game of chess.
Now, it was unlikely to be an even battle. Chahal was a junior chess champion before switching to cricket. He had represented India in the Asian and World youth championships, but lack of funds and sponsors meant he had to end his chess dreams. “To progress in chess, he needed about ~ 50 lakh a year. But we could not find sponsors. So, he had to abandon the game. He does play as a hobby these days,” his father, KK Chahal, had once said.
Against the Ludhianaborn Sodhi, Chahal proved his skills hadn’t eroded one bit.
The bowler was the first to post on Twitter the final position on the board after he had checkmated Sodhi using his Queen and a Rook. Sodhi retweeted the post, saying now that the result was public, his teammate Matt Henry won’t let him forget the defeat.
Sodhi though tried a re-match, and not surprisingly, the result proved the same. The Kiwi spinner posted a picture after the second match, which also he lost tamely.
Sodhi acknowledged his rival’s superiority in chess. “We played two games and it’s fair to say he hammered me. I didn’t expect him to be as cunning as what he was. I was always on the defensive. It was pretty funny for everyone,” he was quoted as saying in the New Zealand website stuff.co.nz.