Parthiv Patel: A couple of incidents that have happened outside the IPL should not affect it

If the recent incidents are a reminder of anything, they prove that success and awards amount to nothing. It takes just one moment of foolishness to let it all slip away. An individual no matter how great or popular can go from somebody to nobody as was in the case of disgraced Australian skipper Steven Smith.

It has created ripples that reached every corner of the cricketing world and with IPL scheduled within weeks of it, had to face the biggest blow. Both Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad had to go for plan B in the eleventh-hour to replace Smith and David Warner. However, Royal Challengers Bangalore player Parthiv Patel was quick to dismiss that the notion will dampen the shine on the prestigious Indian Premier League which is slated to begin on April 7.

"It's unfortunate. But IPL has been a very big brand. It's such a big tournament with a lot of young players and seniors have been around for years. A couple of incidents that has happened outside the IPL should not affect," 

"I don't think I'm in a position to speak on what has happened. The ICC and CA have taken decisions... Right now the focus is how RCB can win and how I can contribute rather than thinking about something which has happened outside," Patel told reporters on the sidelines of a Royal Challengers Bangalore event.

Patel, who was part of the 2015 and 2017 Mumbai Indians squad that won the IPL, made a comeback to the RCB franchise after he played with them back in 2014. Patel was part of a total of six IPL teams ever since the first edition in 2008, and has affected 71 dismissals and scored 2,322 runs.

"A lot has changed from where I was in 2014. I'm coming with a lot of experience of winning the tournament. My performance individually has been very good in last few IPLs, also in the domestic tournaments,"

"Nothing many things will change for me. I've been working hard personally. Hopefully, I will help the team to win the tournament. RCB have played two finals (in IPL and CLT20), but could not convert to tournament winning performance. There's no point analyzing what happened in last few years. We could have done it (the analysis) if it was the same team," Patel added.

Patel remained highly optimistic of the team’s chances this time round led by the passionate Virat Kohli. He added that Kohli brought a lot of positive energy to the team and is also very demanding from his players.

"When Virat's captaining, you have to be on your toes. He brings in a lot of positive energy makes sure you have to give 100 percent, a reason why we are getting a lot of positive results,"

"A captain's job is to push you, as a leader if you want results you want everyone to give more than 100 percent. There's no complains about captain pushing you. Setting the right example," Patel said.