IPL 2021: Axar Patel discloses how he convinced Rishabh Pant to give him the Super Over
Axar Patel had a game to remember on his first outing after recovering from Covid-19. The left-arm spinner bowled a brilliant Super Over on Sunday against the Sunrisers Hyderabad. It helped DC win the match to go second in the IPL points table.
The 27-year-old revealed how he convinced Rishabh Pant to hand him the ball ahead of Avesh Khan against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Avesh Khan mentioned after the game how Ricky Ponting and Rishabh Pant had given him the IPL Super Over responsibilities earlier.
However, a late change saw Axar Patel bowl the crucial over as the Delhi Capitals held on to their nerves to emerge victorious.
Axar Patel and Avesh Khan got together for a little chat after the thrilling win. Khan asked Axar Patel to explain how he convinced Rishabh Pant to hand the ball to the spinner.
“I was just thinking that it is very difficult to score runs against a spinner on this wicket. I felt a spinner would be much better than a fast bowler on this wicket."
"I went to the captain and explained how it would be difficult for the left-hander to target one side of the boundary, and the right-hander can get out if he takes a chance while targeting the shorter side,” Axar Patel revealed.
The brave call to hand the Super Over to a spinner paid dividends as Axar Patel bowled a tight over to David Warner and Kane Williamson. He conceded just seven runs, bowling two dot balls as his tight line kept the SRH batsmen in check.
Axar Patel had earlier finished with figures of 2/26 in his four overs. His outstanding 17th over, where he conceded just four runs and picked up two wickets, helped tilt the game in DC’s favor.
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Avesh Khan dissects his bowling plans with Axar Patel
While Axar Patel impressed with the ball on his IPL 2021 debut, Avesh Khan continued his promising start to the campaign. The Delhi Capitals pacer ended as the pick of the bowlers, finishing with 3/34 in his four overs.
Despite being second in the Purple Cap race with 11 wickets, Avesh Khan is mindful that there is room for improvement.
Avesh reflected, “The ball was holding up a bit in the wicket, so the plan was to bowl some slower balls. I tried to get Kane Williamson to hit shots towards the longer boundary."
"I made a mistake when I conceded two boundaries off J Suchith which brought them back into the game. That is something I want to improve in the next match."
"I am currently second in the Purple Cap standings. I want to focus more on team performance than the Purple Cap. If you do well and the team wins, that brings much more happiness,” he added.
The 24-year-old has been Delhi Capitals’ premier Indian pacer since match one and has managed to keep experienced stars like Umesh Yadav and Ishant Sharma out of the line-up.
Many were surprised with Avesh Khan’s inclusion at the start of the tournament, but the young gun told Axar Patel he had been assured of his place before the first game.
“The captain and coach told me that I will be playing from the first game. I have been able to meet their expectations till now and will look to carry this form going ahead. Hope to win more games for my franchise,” Avesh revealed.
The memorable win takes Delhi Capitals to second in the IPL 2021 standings, behind CSK due to their inferior net run rate. They will now face Royal Challengers Bangalore in Ahmedabad on April 27.