‘Against MI, It Feels Special’: Harshal Patel On His IPL Fifer

Pace bowler Harshal Patel went for 15 runs in his first over and then went onto pick 5 wickets in the match vs MI.

Harshal Patel celebrates one of his five wickets in the 2021 IPL season-opener against Mumbai Indians.

(Photo: BCCI)

Pace bowler Harshal Patel, who went for 15 runs in his first over, came back in the death overs to pick five wickets in his last three overs against Mumbai Indians on Friday to claim his first fifer in T20 cricket.

The 30-year-old Royal Challengers Bangalore bowler said he took a cue from the way the ball was tailing in to the batsmen in the end overs.

“[The] Ball started tailing a bit when I came into bowl in the 16th over, that was my cue. And I executed it brilliantly,” he said after the end of Mumbai Indians innings on Friday.

"It was very clear from the beginning I was going to bowl two overs at the death but today I bowled three. Feels great," he added.

Harshal Patel of Royal Challengers Bangalore celebrates the wicket of Macro Jansen of Mumbai Indians during match 1 of the Vivo Indian Premier League 2021.

Patel said he wasn't unnerved by the formidable MI batting line-up which comprised big-hitting batsmen.

You can’t look at the opposition all the time. All you need to focus on at the top of your mark is your execution and planning and that’s what I did. This is my first five-wicket haul in all the T20s I’ve played. Coming against MI, it feels special.

Harshal Patel

The right-arm bowler, who has been playing domestic cricket for a decade now and represents Haryana at the first-class level said the bounce on the wicket wan't good.

"It's a decent batting surface. Just the dimensions allow you to take [the] pace off. Also, the bounce isn't as good as it usually is. It's probably keeping low."