Former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan opined that India cricket team must consider Rajat Patidar for T20Is in the future, following the loss against England in the ENG vs IND 2nd T20I. Despite being in red-hot form, amassing runs in both domestic cricket and in IPL, and playing extremely well against spin, the Madhya Pradesh batter wasn’t considered for the series against Ireland and England. Pathan reckons that the RCB skipper needs to be considered by India in the shortest format of the game in order to strike a balance between left and right-handed batters in the playing XI.
‘Look at Rajat Patidar going forward’
Six out of the top seven batters fielded by India on Saturday in the IND vs ENG 2nd T20I were left-handed batters. Captain Shreyas Iyer, who came out to bat at number 4, was the only right-handed batter in the top 7. Had Sanju Samson played instead of being replaced by debutant Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in the playing XI, then he would have been the second right-handed batter in the top seven. In light of the excessive presence of southpaws in India’s batting order, Pathan has suggested India to look at Patidar and said that he must get an opportunity soon, especially since India have a lot of time to experiment before the T20 World Cup in 2028.
“Looking at the number of left-hand batters in the Indian T20 team right now, it’s even more of a reason for Team India to look at Rajat Patidar going forward. I really hope he gets an opportunity, especially since there is still plenty of time for Team India to experiment before the next T20 World Cup,” Pathan wrote on social media platform X.
Ever since Gautam Gambhir has taken over as the head coach of the India cricket tram, the idea of using a left-right combination at all times has been discarded. It is no secret that GG prefers having more left-handers in the side irrespective of how the combination will look like.
Talking about Rajat’s performance in IPL 2026, he scored 501 runs from 14 innings He averaged 41.75, at a strike rate of 192.69. The RCB captain struck five fifties, 42 sixes and 30 fours, making it his best season since his IPL debut. Patidar has grown leaps and bounds in the shortest format of the game ever since making his IPL debut in 2022 and has led RCB to two back-to-back titles.
Cricket
Shreyas Iyer throws Ravi Bishnoi under bus with veiled 'pinpoint' dig for loss in ENG vs IND 2nd T20I
