Former Indian player Aakash Chopra was impressed with the way experienced left-arm spinner Axar Patel bowled on day four of the first Test against Bangladesh in Chattogram. He was the most effective among the three spinners that India had, where he claimed three wickets on day four as well – Yasir Ali, Mushfiqur Rahim, and Nurul Hasan.
In a video on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra said: “Axar Patel is the ideal kind of bowler that you want when the pitch gets slower. This is because while spinners like Kuldeep and Ashwin, who are slower through the air, become even slower, Axar’s optimum pace is just right to extract something off the slow pitch and that’s why he picked up three wickets.”
Aakash Chopra also applauded other Indian bowlers for giving Axar Patel the needed support. Mohammed Siraj went wicketless, but Umesh Yadav, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Kuldeep Yadav each scalped a wicket to help India win the game as well.
“There is absolutely no fun in playing Test cricket on benign dead pitches” – Aakash Chopra
Chopra again stated: “Umesh Yadav was also brilliant with the ball. He was perhaps unlucky to not have 2-3 wickets already to his name as did trouble the batters. If you win the game despite Ashwin not taking the bulk of wickets, you’ve done really well as a bowling unit.”
Meanwhile, Aakash Chopra also shared why playing on a lively wicket is better than that on a benign one as well.
“Either the pitch should have help for spin or it should aid the pacers. There is absolutely no fun in playing Test cricket on benign dead pitches. Bangladesh still have life left in them. Mehidy played the most number of balls among their batters in the first innings and Shakib is a quality batter too. So it may not be as straightforward for India as it looks. They will probably have to work harder to break this partnership. The pitch gets slower in Chattogram and so it’s probably a bit more difficult to pick wickets,” Aakash Chopra concluded.
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