'India are very impatient with wicket-keepers': Parthiv Patel questions inconsistent selection
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) wicket-keeper Parthiv Patel has opened up about his career with the Indian team, as well as the national selection policies with regard to glovemen.
Speaking to Aakash Chopra on the latter's YouTube channel, the southpaw said that India have sent mixed signals when selecting keepers, and stated that he feels the selection panel should be more patient.
"Personally, I think that with wicket-keepers, we are very impatient. We can't expect (them to perform) in every match and every series. I played two Tests in South Africa, then Dinesh Karthik played two Tests in England, then in Australia, both Karthik and Saha weren't there, so Rishabh Pant played," said Parthiv Patel.
"According to me, we are trying to fix something that is not broken. Now that we have Saha, we don't have a reason to do anything else. I feel that against England, when they asked me to open, I opened. In the 5th Test, my third of the series, Vijay injured his shoulder and I opened after keeping for 170 overs," he added.
Parthiv Patel on his career coinciding with that of MS Dhoni
The stumper also spoke about the famous theory that MS Dhoni's success kept the former out of the national team. Parthiv Patel refused to accept any such proposition and took full responsibility for not achieving the same success as the former Indian skipper.
"Many people have told me that I was unlucky to have been born in the era of MS Dhoni. But I played cricket for India before Dhoni and it would be wrong to seek sympathy by saying that I couldn't play because of Dhoni. I didn't perform well and as a result, Dinesh Karthik played. After him, Dhoni played," said Parthiv Patel.
After making his debut in 2002 as a 17-year-old, Parthiv Patel played only a few games before being sidelined due to poor form and better options on the bench. He made a long-awaited comeback to the Test side in 2016 as a replacement for the injured Wriddhiman Saha but wasn't given an extended run of games again.
The 35-year-old is completely justified in his claims, as the Indian selectors have played a game of musical chairs with the keeper's role. Rishabh Pant and Saha have been in and out of the team at random, with Dinesh Karthik occasionally making appearances as well.
The gloves have been donned by KL Rahul as well in ODIs, with Pant often relegated to the bench. It remains to be seen if Parthiv Patel gets another shot at the Indian team, and he certainly deserves a longer rope.