IPL: Parthiv Patel set to join Gujarat Titans as batting mentor

Parthiv Patel is all set to join Gujarat Titans as batting mentor from the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) season. Sources close to developments reveal that Patel will join the support staff led by former India cricketer Ashish Nehra.

Patel replaces Gary Kirsten who was earlier the batting coach and mentor of the side. Kirsten left the IPL franchise and joined the Pakistan cricket team as the white-ball head coach.

Vikram Solanki continues to be with the side as Director of Cricket and was in attendance for the Delhi vs Tamil Nadu Ranji Trophy fixture at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.

Before the GT move, Parthiv Patel was associated with Mumbai Indians as talent scout and was regularly spotted watching domestic fixtures, even the age-group ones, in the country.

The wicketkeeper-batter joined MI after announcing his retirement from all forms of cricket in December 2020 and has been busy with scouting and commentary duties since then.

He tracks the domestic circuit very aggressively and will be a valuable addition to the GT camp who would look to assemble another title winning squad at the upcoming mega auction. The southpaw's understanding of the IPL ecosystem, as he has played for multiple teams in the past, will also help the GT franchise chart their way forward.

GT have had a phenomenal entry into the IPL as they won the opening season, were runners-up in the next but couldn't finish the cycle on a high in the 2024 edition.

Hardik Pandya's transfer to Mumbai Indians and injury to Mohammed Shami hurt the balance of the squad but they would look to make amends and put a strong core in place. The work is already underway as all teams are finalising their retentions and it will be interesting to see if GT put their weight behind Shami.

Shubman Gill is likely to be their top retention as the franchise had promoted him to captaincy last season and want to continue the partnership with one of India's most talented batters.