The thrill on coach Tom Moody’s face said it all. Sitting at the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) table during the Indian Premiere League (IPL) auction in Bengaluru, Moody showed a thumbs up sign when fast bowler Siddharth Kaul was bought by the franchise for Rs 3.8 crore . The 27-year-old pacer, who received his maiden Indian cricket team ODI call-up against Sri Lanka in the three-match series last year, has emerged as the costliest cricketer from Punjab in this year’s IPL action, surpassing old-horses Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh.
“I am grateful to SRH think-tank for believing in my abilities and persisting with me for the upcoming IPL season. Coach Tom Moody along with Bhuvi paaji (Bhuvneshwar Kumar) were instrumental in getting out the best in me last season. I am really excited to be back in the Orange Army and have set my goals already,” said Kaul, who was re-purchased by SRH from a base price of Rs 30 lakh.
During the last IPL, the pace bowler from Punjab was SRH’s third-highest wicket-taker -- with 16 scalps in 10 games.
A good IPL outing, followed by consistent performances in the domestic tournaments last year, pushed Kaul into the Indian ODI team for a three-match series against Sri Lanka. Even though, Kaul could not get any game in the series -- even as Shreyas Iyer and Washington Sundar made their ODI debuts against Sri Lanka -- the Chandigarh-based cricketer said he learnt a lot by the experience of being in the Indian squad.
“There were only three ODI games and India lost the first game in Dharamsala. I was not disappointed at all (that I didn’t get a game). Of course, a cricketer dreams to wear the Indian team jersey. I am sure I will get more chances in the future. I just have to keep performing consistently for Punjab, North Zone and SRH in the IPL,” said Kaul, who will have Khaleel Ahmed, Basil Thampi, T Natarajan, Sandeep Sharma as teammates, besides Carlos Brathwaite and Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
{{/usCountry}}“There were only three ODI games and India lost the first game in Dharamsala. I was not disappointed at all (that I didn’t get a game). Of course, a cricketer dreams to wear the Indian team jersey. I am sure I will get more chances in the future. I just have to keep performing consistently for Punjab, North Zone and SRH in the IPL,” said Kaul, who will have Khaleel Ahmed, Basil Thampi, T Natarajan, Sandeep Sharma as teammates, besides Carlos Brathwaite and Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
{{/usCountry}}“The Indian cricket team coach, Ravi Shastri, was also very patient and positive about me,” said Kaul.
“It was wonderful to go through the experience of being in the Indian dressing room. You learn so much. Rohit bhai (Sharma) was the captain in the series. The way he battered the Lankans for his double-hundred in Mohali taught me how a great cricketer can lift his game under pressure. So, I am waiting for my chance. I hope very soon I will be able to make my India debut. Till then, I have to make the most of the opportunities,” added Kaul, who has been Punjab’s spearhead the last five years, performing consistently well for the state side.