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Axar Patel made the headlines for all the right reasons throughout the T20I series against Australia. The left-arm spinner produced brilliant performances in all three matches. In the decider in Hyderabad on Sunday (September 25), Axar stepped up with figures of 3/33 to help Rohit Sharma and Co. clinch the series 2-1.
The all-rounder also produced a brilliant run out of dangerous Australian batter Glenn Maxwell with a direct hit.
He finished the series with eight wickets while giving away only 63 runs in three outings. Unsurprisingly, Patel was adjudged the Player of the Series for his outstanding performances.
Australian coach Andrew McDonald has been mighty impressed with Axar Patel stepping up in the absence of Ravindra Jadeja, who is undergoing rehab due to a knee injury.
Speaking to PTI, McDonald said:
“Axar, in particular, had an outstanding series. With Jaddu (Jadeja) out, everyone thought it might become a bit of weakness for India, but they’ve found another one again, which tends to happen.”
The spinner was brought into the Indian team as a replacement for Jadeja and seems to be playing identically to the Saurashtra all-rounder.
Axar Patel in purple patch ahead of T20Is against South Africa
It is worth mentioning that Axar Patel finished with bowling figures of 3/17 when India failed to defend 208 runs in the first T20I. The left-arm spinner was also the standout bowler in the rain-curtailed second T20I in Nagpur, where he ended up with 2/13.
Axar has so far scalped 16 wickets in 14 T20Is at a decent economy rate of 7.8 this year. He will look to continue his exploits in the upcoming T20Is against South Africa and the ICC T20 World Cup in Australia next month.
The southpaw is also a decent batting option for India. He recently smashed an unbeaten 35-ball 64 against West Indies in the second ODI to help the Men in Blue win the match by two wickets.
Axar will next be seen in action in the T20I series against South Africa. Team India will play their opening match against the Proteas in Trivandrum on Wednesday (September 28). The action will shift to Guwahati (October 2) and Indore (October 4) for the second and third T20Is, respectively.
