Parthiv Ajay Patel (born 9 March 1985) is a former Indian professional cricketer, wicketkeeper-batsman, and was a member of the Indian national cricket team.
He is a left-handed batsman and played for Gujarat in domestic cricket.
Having lost a finger at the age of 9, he initially found it hard to keep wickets, but after enough practice, he was used to it.
2002
When Parthiv played for the Indian team in 2002, he became the youngest wicket-keeper to represent a country in Tests.
With the emergence of MS Dhoni as wicketkeeper-batsman, Parthiv Patel's chance of becoming the first choice keeper for India faded away.
Parthiv debuted in the year 2002 against England at Trent Bridge at 17 years and 153 days to become Test Cricket's youngest wicketkeeper.
He had replaced the injured Ajay Ratra and eclipsed the record previously held by Pakistan's Hanif Mohammed (17 years and 300 days).
He played out an hour in the match while batting and hence saved India from defeat.
2003
Patel made his ODI debut against New Zealand in January 2003.
He was selected in the Indian squad for the 2003 Cricket World Cup but did not play any games, with Rahul Dravid being used as a makeshift wicket-keeper to allow the use of an extra batsman or bowler.
With this policy in place, Patel only made intermittent appearances in ODIs, usually when Dravid was injured or being rested (in full or from wicket-keeping duties).
He played 13 ODIs in a two-year span, and during an interrupted career managed only an average of 14.66 and a top-score of 28 and was dropped thereafter.
2004
However, with the emergence of Dhoni and poor wicketkeeping, he was sidelined for a few matches in 2004.
2010
Parthiv returned to the Indian team in 2010 in the 4th and 5th Odi vs New Zealand.
He celebrated this moment by hitting two back to back half centuries.
2011
On 16 May, it was announced that Parthiv will be leading the Kochi Tuskers Kerala for the rest of the 2011 Indian Premier League.
2012
As a result of the termination of Kochi Tuskers franchise, Parthiv along with the other players from the franchise was once again auctioned for the 2012 Indian Premier League season.
He was picked by Deccan Chargers for $1m
During the 2012 IPL Trading Window.
2013
Parthiv was picked up by Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2013 and by Royal Challenger Bangalore in 2014.
2015
Patel was signed by Mumbai Indians for the 2015 IPL as an opening batsmen.
2016
Patel led the Gujarat side in the 2016–17 Ranji Trophy.
Beating Odisha and Jharkhand in the quarterfinal and semifinal, the team reached the final for only the second time.
In the final in January, they met defending champions Mumbai in Indore.
Patel scored 90 in the first inning and 143 in the second and helped beat Gujarat to win its first Trophy.
Patel's 143 was the highest in a successful chase in a Ranji Trophy final.
The win also made Gujarat the first team and Patel the first captain to have won all three major domestic titles.
On 23 November 2016, Parthiv Patel was called up as a replacement for the regular wicket-keeper Wriddhiman Saha who had a thigh strain, for the third Test (at Mohali) of the India-England home series.
He played his first Test in eight years, having missed 83 Test matches between appearances.
2018
In July 2018, he was named as the captain for India Green for the 2018–19 Duleep Trophy.
In January 2018, he was bought by the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 2018 IPL auction.
In 2022, Gujarat Giants selected him in the Legends League Cricket and gave him the captaincy in the 2023 Legends League Cricket season.
2019
In October 2019, he was named as the captain of India B for the 2019–20 Deodhar Trophy.
Patel was auctioned in the inaugural Indian Premier League (IPL) to Chennai Super Kings.
He used to be a regular in the team and opened with the former Australian opener Matthew Hayden.
He did not keep wicket as the Indian wicketkeeper as captain MS Dhoni was in the team.
For the fourth season, he was signed by Kochi Tuskers Kerala.
2020
In December 2020, Patel announced his retirement from all forms of cricket.
After his retirement, Patel joined Mumbai Indians as a Talent Scout.
He is also now seen as a commentator in the Indian Premier League and International Matches too.
