IPL 2017: Axar Patel, King XI Punjab's unfortunate matchwinner

Axar Patel floored RCB with both the bat and the ball yesterday

It was the day for Sandeep Sharma. Getting past modern cricket’s three best batsmen in the span of 24 balls is some feat and he deservedly hogged all the headlines for this effort. The talking point of yesterday’s game was also RCB’s continuation of ridiculous batting performances that led to their ninth defeat in 12 games.

But during all this drama and madness at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, another player from Kings XI Punjab completed his job efficiently as usual, however, wasn’t among the newsmakers. Axar Patel scored 38 vital runs from just 17 balls to propel Punjab’s score to 138 and then struck the final nail in the coffin by picking three wickets to complete RCB’s misery.

Yesterday’s match was reminiscent of Axar’s entire career in IPL. He has been the star performer for Punjab for the last three seasons but has seldom enjoyed the limelight.

The coming of age

In 2014, Kings XI Punjab reaped heavy success in IPL as their strategy of frontloading the hitters redefined batting in T20 cricket. In 2015 and 2016 the same strategy backfired and they finished at the last position in the points table.

However, during these three years of roller coaster ride, one thing that remained constant for Punjab was the presence of Axar Patel in the playing XI. The tall and skinny left arm orthodox spinner from Gujarat, Patel was offered the role of the lead spinner in 2014 when he was barely 20 years old and had no prior international experience.

And this little-known spinner delivered. Not just for one season but since 2014 till date, he is the spearhead of Punjab’s spin department and with 56 wickets in 55 matches has remained a force to reckon with in the IPL. His impressive economy rate of 7.37 speaks volume about his control while his immaculate performances in crunch moments have proved his profound maturity.

His place in the team becomes indispensable when one adds his batting abilities. In three seasons he has amassed more than 500 runs and all these runs are worth in gold for Punjab as they were mostly produced to bail out the team in tight situations.

Another reminder of his talent

Axar’s late flurry with the bat helped Punjab get to a challenging total

In yesterday’s game also his knock was the game-changing batting performance. Coming to bat at the score of 79/5 in 14 overs, Patel ensured that Punjab batted through their quota of 20 overs and his fierce hitting pushed the score to 138. His strike rate of 223.52 was highest in the game while his score of 38 was only second to Mandeep Singh’s 46.

His carnage against Watson in the 20^th over was what earned Punjab the momentum. Patel hoicked the first ball for a six which crashed on the roof of Chinnaswamy while the next two deliveries went for fours courtesy of a pull and a powerful straight drive. 19 came from that over and RCB walked off the field feeling frustrated.

Axar then came back with the ball to torment RCB again. He got rid Watson in the 11^th over with a short and wide delivery but his biggest impact came in the 18^th over. RCB needed 28 runs from 18 balls and the partnership of Negi and Badree had until that point added 24 crucial runs.

On the first delivery, Pawan Negi miscued a slog which ended in Saha’s gloves while the second ball crashed into Samuel Badree’s stumps. Two balls, two wickets, and RCB were once again floored at their home ground.

This was one of those days for Axar when everything went right. His hits stayed big while he earned wickets on short and flat deliveries. But this is what Axar is all about. While batting, he believes in muscling the ball and power hitting. It may be his luck or it is the result of his pure timing and an unconventional technique that he has mastered over the years.

His bowling too is nothing fancy. He seldom uses variations, doesn’t float the ball in the air and is not known to set the batsmen up. What he does instead is, he keeps it straight and bowls flat inviting the batsmen to hit him through the line. And maybe again it is his luck or his sheer accuracy and skill to persist that prevents the batsmen from connecting the hits and Axar ends up getting wickets.

After becoming a mainstay in Punjab’s unit, Axar certainly demands a place in the national team. But unfortunately, his career has collided with another left-arm spinner from Gujarat who too bats effectively. Ravindra Jadeja, at the moment, is at the top in international cricket and hence Axar may find it difficult to bypass Jadeja to find a place in Indian team.

The 23-year-old spinner from Punjab has age on his side but will he be able to persist for a longer period? The answer, as they say, lies in time but for now, he is making huge statements in the IPL with his all-around skills and is turning out to be their biggest matchwinner among other heavyweights.