Don’t think I’m unlucky to have played in the Dhoni era, feels Parthiv Patel

At 17 years and 153 days, Parthiv Patel, in 2002 against England, became the youngest wicket-keeper in Test cricket in the game’s history and he was adored by many for his rather short stature, which made him a pocket dynamite. However, inconsistency with the bat meant that Patel’s place in the team was never secure and post 2005, he was completely phased out of the team, replaced by none other than MS Dhoni. What followed after that was a decade of dominance from the man from Jharkhand, not only making over 400 international appearances for the nation but also cementing himself as one of the all-time greats of the game. 

But reflecting on competing with Dhoni during the mid-2000s, Patel, whose opportunities were few and far between due to the Jharkhand man’s meteoric rise, stated that he doesn’t consider himself unlucky to have existed in the Dhoni era. The Gujarat wicket-keeper added that Dhoni reached astronomical heights due to the simple fact that he, unlike Patel, grabbed every opportunity that came his way with both hands.

“Dhoni came into the team because I did not have a couple of good series and I was dropped. I know people can say it just to gain sympathies that I was born in the wrong era. But I don’t believe that,” Patel was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.

“Whatever Dhoni has achieved was something very very special and he achieved because he made sure of the opportunities he received. I don’t feel unlucky at all.”

Patel’s last appearance for the national team came against South Africa in 2018, where he was deployed as the wicket-keeper in the absence of incumbent keeper Wriddhiman Saha.