Wisden overview
Small even for his tender age, when Parthiv Patel led his side onto the stage during the Wisden Indian Cricketer of the Century Awards in London in July 2002, some people assumed he was the team mascot. But within a month he had instead become Test cricket's youngest wicketkeeper - at 17 years, 153 days - when called up to replace the injured Ajay Ratra for the second Test at Trent Bridge. And he didn't do too badly either, scoring a gutsy, unbeaten 19 which helped stave off an Indian defeat. His glovework in the first two Tests of the home series against West Indies showed a definite improvement over his performance in England. On pitches where the spinners obtained considerable bounce, Parthiv demonstrated a technique and feel for the ball which suggested that India's search for a long-term wicketkeeper may have finally ended. He contributed usefully with the bat too, showing a maturity which far exceeded his age. Adam Gilchrist is his role model: if Patel can achieve even half the success Gilchrist has as a wicketkeeper-batsman, Indian cricket will be well served. S Rajesh

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