Axar Patel's Resilience and Impact: A Strong Comeback to T20Is and World Cup Aspirations

Axar Patel was picked for the squad, however he had missed the World Cup bus. He was forced to miss the home ODI World Cup last year due to a left quadriceps issue. However, the all-around left-arm spinner is not one to dwell on his bad luck.

Axar, on the other hand, prioritized his speedy recuperation and wasted no time in returning to the Indian team to play competitive cricket. Since his return to the highest level of cricket, he has appeared far sharper.

The figures do show Axar's impact to the team's success from the home T20Is against Australia — India's first bilateral assignment after the World Cup — to the current series against Afghanistan. With 10 wickets at an economy rate of 5.85 from his seven T20I appearances thus far, the 29-year-old's discipline has been evident.

For sure the Australians were a depleted unit, resting most of their regulars after the ODI World Cup triumph, while the Afghans are yet to become a formidable force in spite of their capacity to startle better teams. It is impossible to overlook his consistency over these two series, though, even though he frequently plays quiet, very batsmen-friendly songs.

With the exception of the first match, which took place in Visakhapatnam on November 23 against Australia, Axar has been involved in wickets in each of the six T20Is that have followed. If he hasn’t taken wickets, he has ensured to keep opponent batsmen quiet on these sluggish pitches.

Naturally, Axar's selection for the June T20 World Cup will depend largely on how well he does in the upcoming Indian Premier League. But based on the circumstances as they are right now, he is unquestionably in a solid position. Even more so considering that Axar's work ethic and general bowling improvement have impressed the selectors as well.

"It takes a while for a player to find his groove after returning from rehab. He therefore requires that little period of time to calm down. But in Axar’s case, he has been on the ball right from the onset, something that has gone over incredibly well with the selectors, who never doubted his quality,” a BCCI source told The Telegraph on Monday.

In terms of his bowling in recent games, he has done a good job of varying the tempo and giving the ball more rotation. The batter becomes confused about whether the ball will go straight or in when he bowls the stump-to-stump line, the Board source continued, because he is also using the crease and focusing on the off-stump channel.

In addition, Axar chose to play domestic cricket for some crucial game time after his quick recovery from the quadriceps strain rather than immediately rejoining the international circuit.

After barely ten to fifteen days at the National Cricket Academy (NCA in Bangalore) to recuperate, he played in two Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy matches for his state team Gujarat and one Vijay Hazare Trophy match, according to an NCA insider.

Indeed, we had administered a few match simulations to him, and he performed admirably on those assessments. He was eager for game time at the time, therefore he made the wise choice to move straight to domestic cricket.

Powerplay billiards

For a spinner, the first six overs of a Twenty20 Internationals match may be quite challenging due to fielding constraints. But that hasn’t been able to put any pressure on Axar.

He has improved as a bowler and hasn't given anything away in the Powerplay. "I tried bowling for a few years, but at the beginning I didn't have the confidence. Following Sunday's second Twenty20 International against Afghanistan in Indore, Axar said, "I learned what I needed to do with my action, and the confidence has carried forward, helping me bowl in the Powerplay too."

"You must be ready to take a blow. But, you must adjust your perspective since your plans must change. I now bowl in the same spots every time, daring the batter to take a chance.

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