Team India all-rounder Axar Patel, who missed the first Test against England, had an eventful Test debut at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai in the 2nd Test against England. Axar returned with seven wickets including a five-wicket haul to guide his side to a memorable win.
Meanwhile, Axar Patel earned his debut call in the Test side with regular Ravindra Jadeja ruled out owing to injury. Considering England’s inability to play left-arm spin well, Virat Kohli & Co was ready to hand the debut cap to the all-rounder from Gujarat in the first Test; however, an untimely injury compelled him to wait for more.
After a disappointing loss in the first match, it was just about time Axar will slot in the playing XI having recovered from injury. He replaced Washington Sundar and made an immediate impact with the ball alongside Ravichandran Ashwin to help India level terms in the series.
It was just about varying your speed – Axar Patel
After finishing with two wickets in the first innings, Axar Patel was spot on in the second innings returning with five wickets. Thus; he became the second Indian left-arm spinner after Dilip Doshi to pick a five-wicket haul in his Test debut. He bowled the right areas and got the ball to turn and drift making lives of England batters difficult.
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Reacting to an impressive Test debut, Axar Patel admitted that there was assistance from the wicket and he just tried to keep things simple and made the batsman commit errors.
“It was a good experience, to get a five-wicket haul on debut is special. As Kuldeep said, there was much happening on the pitch. It was about varying your speed and I just kept doing it. Forced the batsman to make mistakes. On the first day itself, it was turning. So, we bowled tight lines and got the rewards,” Axar Patel said after the match.
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With two matches still to go, Axar Patel will only look to keep up the good work and make a strong case for himself even when Ravindra Jadeja returns to the scheme of things.