Samit Patel praises Galle Gladiators, looks forward to play in PSL again

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Former England all-rounder Samit Patel, who is representing Galle Gladiators in Lanka Premier League (LPL), has praised team management and is looking forward to play again in HBL Pakistan Super League (PSL) for Lahore Qalandars.

The 37-year-old, while talking in an exclusive interview with Cricket Pakistan, feels lucky to have great owners at Lahore Qalandars and Galle Gladiators, who also own PSL's Quetta Gladiators.

"I know both franchises pretty well know, Sameen [Rana] Bhai at Lahore and Nadeem [Omar] Bhai here at Gladiators. Both are great people," Patel said.

"Quetta is one of the renowned franchises and run by some good people and I am lucky that I've got two good owners. I have a soft spot for Lahore and the way Sameen has treated me is really good," he added.

Galle Gladiators are into the final after beating defending champions Jaffna Kings. They will play the same opponent in the final tomorrow, who qualified after beating Dambulla Kings in Eliminator two.

"LPL has been very good. I think we have been pretty consistent, we have managed to go into the final as we defeated the defending champions three times in the competition," he added.

On the other hand, the England all-rounder vowed to get one step further with Lahore Qalandars in 2022 PSL and bag the title under new captain Shaheen Shah Afridi.

"Hopefully, we can go one step closer and try to lift the trophy. Some really good cricketers have come out from the Qalandars. We have a good squad and need one final push," Patel said.

"Now with Shaheen captain, a new leader with new ideas. I think we can go one step further. The bowling will take care of itself but if we get our batting right, we could be a dangerous force," he added.

Patel opined that the crowd has been amazing at all venues of Pakistan and is keen to improve their record at National Stadium Karachi.

"The crowd plays a lot of part and when you play in Lahore, in front of the home crowd, there's a lot of expectations and a lot of pressure," he said.

"We have played a few amazing games there, the one against Quetta [Gladiatiors] where me and Dunky [Ben Dunk] scored runs and I took wickets in the other game, the crowd was fantastic," he added.

"Karachi is not a happy hunting ground for Lahore as our record there is not that much good but the crowd is fantastic all over Pakistan," he maintained.

Meanwhile, Patel revealed that he has enjoyed his stint playing Big Bash League (BBL) in Australia but hailed PSL's standard of cricket.

"I actually enjoyed the Big Bash but PSL cricket-wise has been fantastic. Some of the talent we have played with and against is outstanding, it's a great league and the standard of cricket is fantastic," Patel stated.

"I enjoyed BBL due to off-field stuff in Australia as you can have downtime and free time," he added.

The left-arm spinner rued bio-bubble challenge as it kills the freedom. "There's a massive lack of freedom, the bio-bubbles are everywhere. It is mentally challenging and not easy to sit in a hotel room doing the same routine."

Patel concluded by revealing that young Pakistani talent excites him and veterans like Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik and Wahab Riaz are among his favorites.