RP Singh calls for more determination in Rajat Patidar's batting after underwhelming Test debut

Rajat Patidar made his debut in the second Test against England at Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Vishakhapatnam. He scored 32 and 9 on his debut Test on a batting-friendly Vizag pitch and former Indian seamer RP Singh has increased expectations from the 30-year-old Madhya Pradesh batter. RP Singh was not completely impressed with Patidar’s performance in Vizag and reckons he should know the importance of his wicket.

RP Singh talked about keeping expectations from Rajat Patidar early on and he said that it is alright to keep expectations from a player who is making his debut as India has seen a lot of players who have scored a century on their debut and also won the Man of The Match. He also said that Patidar should have played with more determination in the second Test. India will miss the services of Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer which means, Patidar can get another opportunity to showcase his batting prowess.

“Rajat Patidar was a part of the second Test and many people say that we should not expect much from him in the first Test but I believe why shouldn’t we expect. After so much hard work over so many years, scoring so many runs, Rajat Patidar has reached here so we should expect from him as we have seen players scoring centuries in their first Test match and becoming the Man of the Match on their debut,” said RP Singh on Cricbuzz’s Chatterbox.

“We can say that the ball was low for Patidar but he was also playing on his backfoot. He should have given some more importance to this match should have played with more determination and should have worked hard because opportunities were coming his way and he could either get a next chance or not but whatever chances he was getting, he should know the importance of his wicket,” he added.

Watch- RP Singh Talks About Rajat Patidar’s Test Debut

No #Kohli & #Shreyas for the last 3⃣ #INDvENG Tests ☹️

How much of the onus would be on #RajatPatidar❓
@rpsingh shares his thoughts, on #CricbuzzChatter pic.twitter.com/mRZ0uoHtTf

— Cricbuzz (@cricbuzz) February 11, 2024

Rajat Patidar and Sarfaraz Khan both are options for India in the middle order and both have amassed ample runs in domestic cricket to get the India call-up. Rajat Patidar has also made his ODI debut whereas Sarfaraz Khan is yet to make his India debut but is expected to play in the ongoing Test series against England. He received his maiden India call-up after KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja were ruled out of the second Test.

The Third Test between India and England in the ongoing five-match series will be played at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot commencing on February 15, Thursday. The five-match Test series is currently leveled 1-1 as India lost the series opener in Hyderabad by 28 runs but then came back stronger with a win in the second Test in Vizag by 106 runs. The Rajkot Test will be an opportunity for both sides to take a lead in the series.