'Learning How to Tackle Field Placements From Rohit Sharma; Whenever Virat Kohli Bats in Nets, I Stand Behind Him': Rajat Patidar

Rajat Patidar opened up on his Test call-up and camaraderie with senior teammates Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the Indian team. Patidar has been scoring consistently well for Madhya Pradesh in domestic cricket for the past few years. The MP batter got a call-up in the Indian team for the first two Tests against England after Virat Kohli decided to miss the matches due to personal reasons.

Patidar also went through a tough time last year after sustaining an Achilles Heel injury which also ruled him out of IPL 2023 where he plays for Royal Challengers Bangalore.

The 30-year-old batter was elated to get the Test call-up after his recovery.

“Getting my first Test call-up soon after my recovery has to be my happiest moment. It is my dream to represent my country in Test cricket. It felt very good to get that call. I was playing India A matches and it felt really good,” Rajat Patidar said in a BCCI interview.

He also talked about spending time with the Indian team and his interactions with head coach Rahul Dravid and skipper Rohit Sharma.

“I have played a lot of matches in the domestic circuit with some of the India players. I have been interacting with Rahul Dravid sir since the last 2 series. I have not spoken to Rohit Sharma a lot but in this tour, I have listened to him talk about how to bat in different conditions. That gives me a lot of confidence,” he said.

The MP batter further said that he has a habit of playing with aggresive intent while batting as he is also learning how to find gaps in different field placements from skipper Rohit.

“I have an aggressive batting style and have batted like this since my domestic cricket debut. I have a habit of playing like that and have not changed a lot of things. I am learning how to tackle field placements from Rohit Sharma,” Rajat Patidar added.

Patidar, who is also Kohli’s teammate at RCB, expressed his admiration for the batting maestro and revealed what he’s trying to learn from his batting.

“Whenever Virat Kohli bats in the nets, I stand behind him and watch his movements. Especially his footwork and body movement against the balls pitched up to him, that I am trying to add relentlessly,” Patidar concluded.