"I had flashbacks of everything that I've been through" - Harshal Patel on wearing Indian jersey for first time

India fast bowler Harshal Patel recalled the moment of wearing the Indian team jersey for the very first time. Harshal was in the spotlight after winning the Purple Cap in IPL 2021, where he picked up 32 wickets in 15 matches at an average of 14.31 and an economy of 8.14 with best figures of 5/27.

Although Harshal wasn't in the mix for India's 2021 T20 World Cup campaign, he stayed back in the UAE after IPL 2021 as one of the net bowlers for the Indian team's preparations.

The Haryana pacer soon earned his maiden India call during the New Zealand T20I series at home, which was played shortly after the World T20 event. He made his international debut in the Ranchi T20I and claimed four wickets at the end of the three-match series.

Speaking about his experience of donning the Indian shirt after toiling in the domestic circuit for more than a decade, Harshal Patel told RCB podcast:

"I felt really proud when I got that jersey. So they rang the bell and left it outside the room. It was a box and I opened it. Took the jersey out and I wore it and took a picture in it. My wife was with me. The first time I wore it, I had flashbacks of everything that I've been through and there was a proud moment."

Harshal Patel joined Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2012 and played 12 games in his first IPL season. After spending six seasons with RCB, he moved to Delhi Capitals in 2018 but was later traded back to his first franchise in 2021.

It was a career-changing year for the medium pacer and much of his success in IPL 2021 was credited to the execution of the slower and yorker deliveries at different junctures of the match.

Speaking on how former Indian pacer Zaheer Khan helped him stock four key deliveries in his variations, Harshal Patel said:

"I learned this from Zaheer Khan in my first ever season with RCB and in IPL. He basically taught me there are four kinds of deliveries. Length ball, bouncers, slower and yorker and how you package that will determine your success. Obviously, execution plays a big part but like I said I kept practicing it. Trial and error over last 10-11 years."

"It's a mix of off the field preparations and your skill practice" - Harshal Patel on bowling in death overs

With leaps and bounds, Harshal Patel has transformed into a death overs specialist bowler for RCB in the last couple of seasons. He snapped 21 of his 32 wickets in IPL 2021 between overs 16 and 20 at an economy rate of 9.18.

In IPL 2022, Harshal maintained the economy rate in the death overs to 9.06 but managed just 10 wickets. Many experts, including legendary player Sachin Tendulkar, called him one of the top death bowlers in the world.

Speaking about the technique and planning required to bowl in death overs, Harshal Patel explained:

"It's not easy to do it but like everything else practice is what actually makes you better at that. I am a big believer in off the field preparations. You sort of need to have calculations in the back of your mind. "

"If I have a plan of bowling slowers and yorkers in the death overs and for some reason I can't execute those, I need to have a plan B ready in my head. In the pressure situations, I don't have to make a lot of decisions and don't need to do a lot of calculations in my head."

The RCB bowler further said:

"It's a mix of off the field preparations and your skill practice. That allows you to adapt to any situation that you are thrown into. It doesn't happen overnight. It takes years of rehearsals and constant tweaking. Have to take into account what the batsman's strengths are and how the wicket is playing."

Harshal was retained by RCB ahead of the IPL 2023 auction for a sum of INR 10.75 crore, which he fetched in the mega auction last year.