Why don’t you try using right-arm: Parthiv Patel recalls sledging episode with Mitchell Johnson

India wicketkeeper-batsman Parthiv Patel is known for his cheeky remarks on the field. The young keeper had once angered former Australia captain Steve Waugh after he tried to sledge the former batsman during his final Test match back in 2004. The left-handed batsman, who led Gujarat to their maiden Ranji Trophy title victory in 2016, has also grown as a keeper and batsman over the years. In a recent interview, he was asked to recall a sledging episode which he has not talked about much.

Speaking on Fan Code’s LockdownButNotOut series, Parthiv recalls an encounter with former Australia pacer Mitchell Johnson during an IPL match in 2016 when he was playing for Mumbai Indians and the left-arm seamer was playing for Kings XI Punjab.

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“One thing I remember I told Mitchell Johnson during an IPL game. I had scored 80 (81 actually) and I’d smashed him all over the park. For the record everytime we’ve played, I’ve smashed him. And he had a lot of words to say to me.  

“So when he came down to bat I told him ‘I don’t think you can get me out with your left arm why don’t you try bowling with your right arm, you might get me out with that’,” the left-handed batsman said.

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Meanwhile, Parthiv also shared his thoughts when asked to pick between KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant in white-ball cricket. “At this point of time, KL Rahul. I feel Rahul is your short-term thing in a way if you’re thinking of the World Cup. I think he’ll do the job for you during the World Cup, there’s no doubt about it,” he said.

“Rishabh Pant definitely has it in him, there’s no doubt about that. If I put myself into his shoes when I was 17-18, I didn’t have a good series, and going back to domestic cricket for a couple of years helped me a lot. Every time I’ve met Rishabh, I’ve always told him that people are talking about you because you’ve talent in you. If you had no talent and if you weren’t talented, people wouldn’t have been talking about you, so keep that in mind. Sometimes, you have to go back to domestic cricket and just get that form back,” he added.

(With IANS inputs)