Punjab Kings (PBKS) pacer Harshal Patel spoke about his subdued feelings of celebration after taking the wicket of MS Dhoni in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 match against Chennai Super Kings (CSK). He said that he had too much respect for the goalkeeper and batsman and that’s why he didn’t celebrate.
Harshal Patel was the key player with the ball for Punjab Kings in the ongoing game against Chennai Super Kings. The fast bowler displayed some great spell of fast bowling and ensured that he helped his team restrict the opposition to a low total.
Harshal Patel bowled sensationally well in the death overs and made run-scoring difficult for the Chennai Super Kings batters. The fast bowler also stunned the crowd when he sent MS Dhoni for a golden duck at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association stadium in Dharamsala.
During the 5th ball of the 19th over, Harshal Patel bowled a slower ball on the stumps which fell down. MS Dhoni had no idea about this as he tried to bring his bat to the ground. The ball went past the weak shot to leg and the off-stump was held back to send the keeper-batter to a golden duck.
While the Punjab Kings fans were beside themselves in the stadium, Harshal Patel wasn’t celebrating much. The fast bowler came into action with just a raise of his hand and bowled his next ball. This caught the attention of many and the video went viral on the internet.
Here is the video:
The reactions say it all! #IPLonJioCinema #TATAIPL #PBKSvCSK pic.twitter.com/owCucgYN8d
— JioCinema (@JioCinema) May 5, 2024
Harshal Patel spoke about why he didn’t celebrate MS Dhoni’s wicket. He explained that he did not want to hold any celebrations out of respect for the CSK batsman. He also talked about the conditions and stated that the ball started to spin. In an interview with broadcasters he explained:
“Wicket was rather drier. I have too much respect for him to celebrate when I get him out (on Dhoni). One of the advantages of a day game is that the course is quite rough. So the ball starts to turn around.” On my first pass it was the other way around.
Practiced at the nets – Harshal Patel on his slower balls
Punjab Kings fast bowler Harshal Patel also spoke about his slower balls and explained that it comes with practice and the more he bowls, the better he gets. The pacer admitted that the batsmen do not recognize his slower balls and that is a great sign for him. He added:
“It’s all about the feel of that throw (slower). The more you bowl, the better you become. Most batsmen don’t pick him. I’ve been practicing at the nets and when he comes out, you get great results.”
Harshal Patel returned with figures of 3/23 in his four overs. His brilliant attack with the ball resulted in the Punjab Kings restricting the Chennai Super Kings to a total of 167/9.