Harshal Patel slams half-century in warm-up match against Northamptonshire after India crumble to 72 for 5

Pacer Harshal Patel smashed an entertaining 54 off 36 balls to help India recover from 72 for 5 in their warm-up match against Northamptonshire in Northampton on Sunday (July 3). Thanks to Patel’s blazing innings, India ended up posting a competitive 149 for 8 in their 20 overs.

Dinesh Karthik-led India were invited to bat first after losing the toss. India’s innings got off to the worst-possible start as Sanju Samson (0) was dismissed off the first ball. He was trapped leg-before-wicket by Josh Cobb.

Rahul Tripathi (7) and Suryakumar Yadav (0) both perished in the third over, before India’s total could reach double figures. Both batters were caught behind off pacer Brandon Glover’s bowling.

Opener Ishan Kishan was next to go for 16 off 20 as India slipped to an embarrassing 51 for 4 in their warm-up clash against the county club. Indian captain Dinesh Karthik gave some semblance of respectability to the innings, scoring 34 off 26 balls.

He hit three fours and a six in his innings before falling to Freddie Heldreich. Karthik’s dismissal saw India lose half of their side with only 72 runs on the board.

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Harshal Patel rescues India with impressive knock against Northamptonshire

Coming into bat at No. 7, Harshal Patel smashed five fours and three sixes to help India recover and finish with a decent total on the board. The right-handed batter took on Freddie Heldreich in the 17th over of the innings and clubbed him for two fours and a six.

Three more fours followed in the next over, bowled by Glover, which went for 14. Harshal was dismissed off the penultimate ball of the Indian innings, but not before clobbering Glover for two maximums. The 31-year-old featured in a sixth-wicket stand of 60 with Venkatesh Iyer, who contributed 20 off 22 balls.

Chasing 150, Northamptonshire were 54 for 5 after seven overs. Of the first four wickets to fall, Avesh Khan claimed two while Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, and Harshal picked up one scalp each.