After closing the curtain on his 18-year professional cricket career, Parthiv Patel has paid a rich tribute to its first captain, Sourav Ganguly, saying the latter showed immense faith in him.
Parthiv Patel (top left) with former Indian cricketers (Image by Reuters)
HIGHLIGHT
- Parthiv Patel announced its retirement from all forms of cricket on Wednesday
- Parthiv made her international debut at age 17 in England.
- I feel privileged to have been in company and to have learned from some stellar companions: Parthiv
Parthiv Patel, on Wednesday, retired after representing India in 25 events, 38 ODIs and a pair of T20Is. The 35-year-old, who last played for India in 2018, on his retirement note, expressed his gratitude to BCCI and many “star teammates.”
The southpaw also took the opportunity to express his “special debt” to his first national team captain Sourav Ganguly. In particular, Patel was only 17 years old when he traveled to England in 2002 and made his debut in a test match in Nottingham. Sourav Ganguly was the captain of the team that had stalwarts like Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman.
“I am grateful to all the captains that I have played under. I am especially indebted to Dada, my first captain, who showed immense faith in me. I feel privileged to have been in the company and learned from some star companions, a lot from whom I can call friends today. In the same breadth, I must admit that the opposing team players have been equally inspiring and taught me well, “wrote Parthiv Patel in his retirement note.
“Today I announce my retirement from all forms of cricket, and as I draw the curtains on this 18 year cricket journey, I am most grateful to many. The BCCI showed a generous amount of trust and faith in a 17” one year to play in India. I am very grateful to them for being a force that guided me and held me by the hand, in the formative years of my young career, “he added.
Patel racked up 1,706 intentional runs, caught 93 catches and stumped hitters 19 times. He played up to 194 first-class matches, captaining his Gujarat state team for a long time. He scored 11,240 runs in them with a 43.39 average.
Parthiv Patel also has a successful IPL career and was part of Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) created in the last edition. However, with the addition of Aaron Finch to the team, he was unable to get a game all season.
