Parthiv Patel feels it is the 'Lady Luck' which has smiled on him and the left-hander is keen to cash in on the opportunity to cement his place in the side.
KOLKATA: Having earned a recall to the Indian Test team after four years, young wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel feels it is the 'Lady Luck' which has smiled on him and the left-hander is keen to cash in on the opportunity to cement his place in the side.
With competition from the ODI skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Tamil Nadu's Dinesh Kaarthick, a comeback for Patel,
even after a successful domestic last season, was highly improbable.
"Had an exhausted Mahendra Singh Dhoni not pulled out of the Sri Lanka series, I might not have got a chance... So,
undoubtedly, there was a little bit of luck involved in me getting selected... In fact tomorrow, we (Avni and I) complete
four months," Parthiv, who last played a Test in 2004 against Australia in Nagpur, said in a candid conversation.
Patel, who married an Ahmedabad-based fashion Avni in March, insisted that despite being ignored for a long time, he
knew he will make it to the team.
"However, I had not lost hope. And finally, I got the opportunity today. I don't have a specific target now, however
my sole aim in Sri Lanka will be to do well and cement my place in the side," Parthiv said.
The Gujarat batsman made his Test debut against England in August 2002, at an age of 17 years and 153 days and became
the youngest wicketkeeper to play Tests.
Harsh reality soon struck as the diminutive Patel failed miserably against spinners. But his stroke-play ability
ensured that he got an extended run -- he scored an aggressive 62 in Sydney in 2003-04, and then faced Shoaib Akhtar and
Mohammad Sami with grit, scoring 69 as an opener.
However, those batting performances weren't enough as the shoddy work behind the stumps was enough to test the
selectors' patience. Eventually, in the third Test of the home series against Australia, he was replaced by Kaarthick.
His form improved in 2007, on a twin tour of Zimbabwe and Harare for India A, where he hit three hundreds and a
half-century.
In fact, Parthiv had got an India call for the England Test tour after performing well for India A in Sri Lanka so
the tour will be a reminiscent one for the wicketkeeper-batsman, he felt.
"In that series against Sri Lanka (2002), I had a couple of 80s batting at No. 7, something that helped me get into the
national side. So I'm pretty confident of a good show now. The conditions are pretty much similar and ideal for batting,"
said Parthiv.
On facing the unorthodox Ajantha Mendis, who was a terror for India batsmen in the Asia Cup, Parthiv says he has plan to
study his style of bowling .
"I'll see his footage and study him... I don't thin he'll be a threat to Indian batsmen, who are good at playing
spin bowling."
Asked whether he would see him as a wicketkeeper or as a batsman for the upcoming tour, Parthiv said, "My role will be
to play for the team, in whatever capacity the situation demands... be it as a wicketkeeper or as a batsman."
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