Samit Patel who scored an unbeaten 64 for Nottinghamshire and helped it to win by 22 runs in the final against Warwickshire, hoped that the England selectors would take note of his good work and recall him to the national team. Patel's last England involvement came during the tour of South Africa nearly two years ago.
Patel's innings was timely given he walked out to bat with Nottinghamshire struggling at 30 for three at Midlands rivals Warwickshire's Edgbaston ground. But Patel's 42-ball knock helped turn the tide as he and former Zimbabwe batsman Brendan Taylor shared a 132-run partnership.
Patel, often overlooked by England for reasons of fitness more than anything else, feels hard done by in being restricted to six Tests, 36 one-day international and 18 Twenty20 internationals since making his first England appearance in 2008. But having now helped Nottinghamshire to a domestic one-day double - they beat Surrey in the 50-over Cup final at Lord's earlier this season - the 32-year-old Patel said he was still available for England selection.
"Playing for England is my top priority. I love playing for England. Every time I put on an England shirt I don't think that I've let them down. You always put yourself out there. You've got to be the right man to do it on the day and luckily enough for me it was. I think class will always show regardless of what the situation is."
He added being overlooked by England in the limited-overs formats had been especially disappointing, particularly as, like many players before him, he felt he was now a much better cricketer than when he last represented his country. "Yeah it has hurt, especially in the white-ball format," he said.
