My Top Five: Rishi Patel

With more than 1,700 runs, a trio of End of Season Dinner awards, a Gold Fox cap, and a new contract, it was an unforgettable year for Rishi Patel.

After a record-breaking 2023, we sat down with the Foxes star to look back on his top five moments of the season.

5: Career-Best Score| Glamorgan, County Championship | Sophia Gardens

In a heavily rain-affected game in Cardiff, Patel shone brightest with his fourth red-ball hundred of the summer “ a score of 179 which represented his career-best.

Comprising 16 fours and five maximums, his century steered Leicestershire to maximum batting points on the final day of July’s contest to cement second place.

The opener’s mammoth knock lasted more than five hours and featured a superb second-wicket partnership worth 168 alongside captain Lewis Hill.

4: Record-Breaking Century| Lancashire, Metro Bank One Day Cup | Emirates Old Trafford

Next up, an innings which saw Patel set a first in Leicestershire history. Following four County Championship tons and one in the Vitality Blast, the 25-year-old became the first Fox to hit a century in all three formats in the same season with a magnificent 161 at Lancashire in the One Day Cup.

He raced out of the traps alongside opening partner Sol Budinger, putting on 159 after just 21 overs before the latter fell for 81. Patel motored to complete a 91-ball ton eight overs later “ going onto make his List A best of 161 (17x4, 5x6).

Patel put on another century stand later in the innings, this time from just 75 balls alongside Colin Ackermann, as he helped the Foxes set their highest ever List A total “ a whopping 411.

3: T20 Hundred | Durham, Vitality Blast | Uptonsteel County Ground

In third spot, an unforgettable display of striking that resulted in Patel becoming the eighth player in Leicestershire history to tally a T20 ton. Chasing 173 to win, a brutal exhibition of power and finesse saw the former Essex man propel the side to victory with 2.4 overs to spare.

Patel arrived at the crease just three balls into the innings, but wasted little time in putting his foot on the accelerator. Five of his first 13 shots raced to the ropes “ reaching his fifty from just 23 deliveries.

He continued to go big, with a massive six onto Milligan Road off Nathan Sowter taking him to three figures. It sparked an ecstatic celebration from a pumped up Patel, who finished on 104 from only 49 balls (12x4, 4x6) as the Foxes completed a T20 double over Durham.

2: Maiden First-Class Century | Yorkshire, County Championship | Headingley

The first step of Patel’s sensational 2023 season took place during the opening round at Headingley. Given the nod at the top of the order at the beginning of the campaign, Patel was looking to reach three figures for the first time in red-ball cricket, having come agonisingly close with 99 at Hove in July 2022.

It couldn’t have come at a better time, with Leicestershire requiring 389 on the final day to end a 113-year wait for a Championship victory at Headingley. The Foxes’ Batter of the Year set an impeccable platform with 125 accrued across a four-hour stay in the middle.

Learning from his downfall at Hove the previous year, and keen not to get stuck in the nervous nineties, Patel reached his maiden first-class century with a huge six into the Western Terrace off Dom Bess.

It was to prove the catalyst for a breakout summer, as Patel manoeuvred his way to six centuries and set records tumbling in all formats.

1: Winning The One Day Cup | Hampshire, Metro Bank One Day Cup | Trent Bridge

A popular choice amongst the current crop of Leicestershire players and a day that will forever be etched into Foxes folklore, the Metro Bank One Day Cup final takes top spot for Rishi’s 2023 highlight.

After playing in four matches during Essex’s 2019 County Championship title win, Patel tasted success for a second time “ featuring as an ever-present in Leicestershire’s 10 List A fixtures last summer.

His 298 runs at 33.11 helped take the Foxes to Trent Bridge “ and although he was dismissed early on in proceedings in the final “ his role with the bat and in the field across the campaign cannot be understated.

To see Rishi star in a Foxes shirt again in 2024, secure a Club Membership or White Ball Pass HERE.