IPL 2021: “I just bet on that” – RCB’s Harshal Patel on his plans for the hat-trick ball

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) pacer Harshal Patel revealed his plan for the ball that helped him bag his IPL hat-trick in his team’s win over Mumbai Indians in the 39th match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 in Dubai.

The 30-year-old dismissed Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard and Rahul Chahar off consecutive deliveries in the 17th over to seal the fate for MI. He finished with figures of 3.1-0-17-4.

Throwing light on his thoughts for the hat-trick ball, Harshal Patel revealed that he bet on a slower delivery against tail-ender Rahul Chahar. That was because even top-order batters struggled to pick up Patel's stock delivery.

“I was thinking if the batters can’t pick my slower balls, then the bowlers also will find it difficult to spot (referring to Rahul Chahar’s wicket that got him the hat-trick). I just bet on that. This is my sixth time being on a hat-trick, and finally (I0 got one, so pretty happy,” said Harshal Patel after the match.

The holder of the Purple Cap in IPL 2021 (with 23 wickets in ten matches), Harshal Patel became the third RCB bowler in IPL history to register a hat-trick. The others to do so are Praveen Kumar (against Rajasthan Royals in 2010) and Samuel Badree (against MI in 2017).

Speaking on how he managed to get the better of Kieron Pollard, Harshal Patel added in this regard:

“He (Pollard) is somebody who can do damage if you bowl in his areas; we wanted to take him wide, and then once you drag him wide, you have the option to bluff him; that came off really well.”

Harshal Patel now has figures of nine for 44 against MI in IPL 2021, including a five-wicket haul and a hat-trick.

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Credit to Mohammed Siraj, Yuzvendra Chahal and Glenn Maxwell: Harshal Patel

Harshal Patel credited his teammates Mohammed Siraj, Yuzvendra Chahal and Glenn Maxwell for bowling tightly. That helped RCB keep MI under pressure before Patel executed his plans at the death.

Mohammed Siraj started well in the powerplay, bowling three overs for just 11 runs. He picked up the vital wicket of Suryakumar Yadav. Glenn Maxwell followed up his batting heroics with a spell of 23 for two off four overs. Yuzvendra Chahal, meanwhile, was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 4-1-11-3.

“The way Siraj started, he’s someone who sets the tempo for us, and the way Maxi and Chahal bowled in the middle overs was absolutely brilliant. They were under pressure at the death, and we executed really well,” added Harshal Patel.

With six wins and four defeats in ten matches, RCB find themselves in third spot in the IPL 2021 points table. They next play the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Dubai on Wednesday.