India Vs Northampton: Harshal Patel stole the show with his all-round performance

India comfortably won the 1st warm-up match against Derbyshire by seven wickets on Friday. Harshal Patel was the top scorer of the game, picked two wickets and even defended 11 runs in the final over. 

India's comeback from a bad start 

Northamptonshire won the toss and elected to bowl first. India was in a difficult situation at one stage where India lost three wickets for eight runs in the first three overs. Samson was gone for a duck on the first ball of the innings off Northampton skipper Cobb. Brandon Glover dismissed Rahul Tripathi and Suryakumar Yadav in the 3rd over, leaving India in a crunch. Indian skipper Dinesh Karthik scored 34(26), including three fours and 1 six. Venkatesh Iyer and Harshal Patel put up a much-needed partnership after the dismissal of Dinesh Karthik. India managed to put on a respectable total of 149 in 20 overs for the loss of 8 wickets. Harshal Patel scored a stunning fifty at a strike rate of 150, including five fours and three sixes.

Indian death over specialist on the charge

While chasing 150, the hosts lost four wickets in the powerplay for 49 runs. India managed to pick wickets in quick succession and took the match till the last over. Harshal Patel and Arshdeep Singh defended 32 runs in the previous four overs against England's County Club. Arshdeep's exceptional death over bowling had a significant impact on the game. When 11 runs were needed in the final over, Harshal nailed a yorker and bowled out Northampton for 139 runs. Arshdeep, Avesh, Chahal and Harshal Patel picked two wickets each, while Prasidh and V. Iyer picked one wicket each. 

Harshal's All-around performance is the main reason for India winning the match. India won both the warm-up games against Derbyshire and Northamptonshire County cricket clubs. These warm-up matches gave young Indian cricketers exposure to English pitches and conditions ahead of the limited-overs series against England starting from July 7.