Munaf Patel is an international cricketer, who was born on July 12, 1983 in Ikhar, Gujarat, India. This right-arm medium pacer gained reputation before even making his First-class debut, when he was spotted by the Indian chairman of selectors Kiran More and sent to the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai. With his sheer pace, he impressed the director Dennis Lillee and the visiting Australian captain, Steve Waugh.
Munaf Patel took 10 wickets for the Board President’s XI against the touring England team and earned a place in the Indian Test squad for the same series. In March 2006, in the second match of that series, he played his first Test match and ended with an impressive figure of 7 wickets for 97 and made a mark as the best performance by an Indian fast bowler on Test debut. In the subsequent 2005-06 Test series against West Indies, Munaf Patel proved to be the fastest bowler in India. He bowled regularly at around 87 mph and occasionally at over 90 mph, and besides being quick he was also consistent with his line and length.
Munaf Patel made his One Day International (ODI) debut on April 3, 2006 against England at Margao. He conceded 54 runs and took 3 wickets in the second match of the DLF Cup in Malaysia against Australia. Munaf Patel earned the Man of the Match award in the first game of the 2006 International Cricket Council (ICC) Champions Trophy against England, after steering India to victory with his good bowling figure of 3 for 18. He played in the 2007 Cricket World Cup and in the subsequent ODI series against Bangladesh. In August 2007, Munaf Patel played in two ODIs against England and took four wickets, before missing out the rest of the series due to an injury.
Mumbai roped in Munaf Patel in a transfer deal in the late 2003 to play domestic cricket, after being persuaded by Sachin Tendulkar. Munaf Patel made his First-class debut in the 2003-04 season and until August 2008, he has played in 38 matches and has taken 136 wickets.
He played his first List A match during the 2003-04 season and as of August 2008, he has played in 70 games, picking up 86 wickets at an average of 29.
Munaf Patel was signed by Rajasthan Royals, the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise for $275,000. He made his Twenty20 (T20) and IPL debut on April 19, 2008 against Delhi Daredevils at Delhi. In the 15 matches that he played in the inaugural IPL season, Munaf Patel took 14 wickets at an average of 30 with his best bowling figure of 3 for 17 against Delhi Daredevils.
