IPL 2021: Ajay Jadeja reveals interesting story about Harshal Patel and Rahul Tewatia’s six-hitting competition

Former India batter Ajay Jadeja has narrated an interesting story about a six-hitting competition that used to take place between Harshal Patel and Rahul Tewatia.

Patel and Tewatia were in opposite camps during Wednesday’s Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 encounter between Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Rajasthan Royals (RR). However, both players represent Haryana in domestic cricket.

Jadeja was the captain of Haryana during his last season in first-class cricket - 2013. Recalling old times, the former India cricketer revealed that both Patel and Tewatia love hitting sixes and used to compete against each other over the same.

Spilling the beans in an interaction on Cricbuzz, Jadeja said:

“I had told him (Harshal) back then that he has great batting ability. I remember Harshal Patel and Rahul Tewatia used to go out in the middle after practice and have a separate six-hitting competition. Tewatia didn’t play in the starting XI those days since (Yuzvendra) Chahal was part of the team."

Jadeja added:

"But I can distinctly recall that Tewatia's sixes were nowhere close to the distance Harshal’s strokes covered. The world hasn't seen his batting ability yet. He has all the attributes to be a good all-round player and I hope he has been practicing.”

Harshal Patel, who broke the record for most wickets by an uncapped player in an IPL season on Wednesday, has smashed three fifties in 107 T20 matches and also has a strike rate of 149.19. In the IPL, Patel has a best of 36 not out.

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“Harshal is very stubborn and wants to succeed at any cost” - Ajay Jadeja

According to Jadeja, Harshal's stubborn nature and never-say-die attitude are among his best traits. Unable to find a place in the Gujarat team, Patel moved to Haryana and had an impressive debut Ranji Trophy season in 2011-12, claiming 28 wickets.

Describing the 30-year-old as someone who is not scared of taking risks, Jadeja said:

“Harshal has always had the ability to perform well. And he has been working very hard on his skills in the last six-seven years. That’s why he has tasted success. He is very stubborn and wants to succeed at any cost. He never gave up. A sportsman should be stubborn. Even if the others don’t agree with you, it is important to have belief in your ability, which is evident in Harshal’s case. He is an outstanding fielder as well and he is made for the T20 format."

Having claimed 26 wickets from 11 games, Harshal Patel needs seven more wickets to break Dwayne Bravo’s (32) record for most scalps in a single IPL season.