Harshal Patel broke into the Indian set-up after the T20 World Cup 2021. On the back of an impressive IPL run for RCB, Harshal was given a long run in the Indian T20I side as a specialist bowler.
After an injury ruled him out of the Asia Cup, he was picked in the squad for the T20 World Cup 2022. However, he did not play a single game in the tournament. He then featured in only one game each in the New Zealand series and the Sri Lanka series and has now not been picked for the T20I series against New Zealand.
After India conceded their most costly final over in T20Is, Aakash Chopra questioned the absence of Harshal Patel in the team.
“What’s the update on Harshal Patel? Is he still nursing an injury? He was our T20 specialist leading into the World Cup…didn’t get to play in Aus. Haven’t seen him since. #IndvNZ,” tweeted Aakash.
Harshal Patel is 32 now and whether he is in the plans for T20 WC 2024 is still a question.