5 best Parthiv Patel moments
When Parthiv Patel was selected in place of injured Wridhiman Saha for the Mohali test, there were a lot of mixed reaction about his selection, considering the 31-year-old’s name hasn’t been in the test arena for more than 8 years. However, the gusty batsman proved the world wrong and made a strong comeback by scoring 42 and 67 in both the innings respectively.
In the recent interview to BCCI.tv, the euphoric Patel said that his inside-out shot off Gareth Batty’s bowling to bring up the eight-wicket win for the team stands out as the most cherished moment as he hadn’t got the chance to finish off matches in the past. “It was a great moment for me. I have been a part of the test matches before, but I had never hit the winning runs.
As a batsman, it’s great to finish off the game. To get the winning runs after making a comeback is a proud moment for me” said Patel.
Also read: Why Parthiv Patel should replace Saha in the long-run
Indeed it was a great moment, however, in addition to that, the cherubic wicket-keeper had some of the best moments ever since he came into the international scene in 2002. But with MS Dhoni setting a huge benchmark in batting and wicketkeeping for more than a decade, the fans always brushed the past moments of Parthiv Patel aside. Let’s go back and relive some of his best moments.
#5. Youngest Wicketkeeper to make a debut in test history
During India’s second test against England at Trent Bridge in 2002, Parthiv Patel made his test debut at the age of 17 to become the youngest wicketkeeper to make a debut in test history. Prior to this match, the diminutive player had not played any first-class cricket, and eyebrows were raised about his selection when he got out for a duck in his first innings.
However, he proved the doubters wrong in the second innings by producing a resilient batting performance.
When England posted a huge first innings total of 617 runs, the Indian batsmen were desperate to save the test. Although the contributions from the trio of Dravid, Tendulkar and Ganguly made the game virtually safe, it still required an unbeaten 19 from 60 balls from Parthiv Patel to save the test match. His 84 minutes on the pitch not only saved India but also ended England’s hopes of winning four consecutive tests for the first time since 1991-92.