It’s been three weeks since India lifted the T20 World Cup but the echoes of triumph remain fresh to the team members who were instrumental in this historic run.
It was a magical, monumental, and memorable moment for the Indian team as they picked up the Trophy after years of near misses in finals. And on top of that the side was unbeaten in the tournament becoming the first team to achieve this wonderful feat.
One of the members who played a crucial role with both bat and ball was none other than Axar Patel, an unexpected hero who rose to the occasion even in the final game against South Africa.
In his recent interview with Espncricinfo, he was asked if he has sunk the feeling of becoming the World Champion for the first time in his life. The all-rounder responded with “not yet to be honest”
“Not yet to be honest. And even if we want to, the others are not letting us do it. The kind of atmosphere there is, the people are not letting it sink in. The kind of welcome we are getting, the kind of reception we are getting, locally too, is great. It’s been really enjoyable these last few days”
The 30-year-old admits that he isn’t very social but when he returned to his hometown, Gujarat, people were so welcoming even when he reached home at midnight.
“Even when I came to Gujarat, I think I reached home after 12am, and even then, people came in huge numbers to meet me. It was incredible. That is when I thought how much craze there is for cricket in this country. It felt that along with us the entire country and the people have won this trophy”
Axar played a pivotal role in India’s unbeaten run. In 8 games, he scored 92 runs at a strike rate of 139 and with bowling he was equally impressive as he took 9 wickets at an economy of 7.9.
And in the final, he was promoted. Batting first, three of the top four were back to the hut and India were in big trouble. He batted at 4 in the game against Pakistan but in the final, it was out of the blue promotion for Axar. And Axar’s well-crafted 31-ball-47 showed his mettle in his first final.
Axar admitted that he wasn’t expecting that promotion but if anything, it proved how calm and composed Axar is.
“I came to know about the promotion barely four or five balls before I went out to bat,” Axar says. “It wasn’t that long. When Rishabh [Pant] got out, I was asked to get ready, and I think in the next over itself Surya [Suryakumar Yadav] got out.
“I wasn’t nervous. Obviously, there is pressure on you, but at the time, I didn’t understand how to react. I don’t think when I went to bat there was anything going on in my mind. I had gone with a see-ball, hit-ball mindset. I was not thinking about anything, not worrying about the consequences, there were no second thoughts in my mind”
Axar made his debut in 2014, a decade ago, and thus far he has represented India in 14 Tests, 57 ODIS, and 60 T20i games. But recently, he has been a first choice for his side and proven his selection right. If he can’t perform with bat, he will get crucial wickets, and if he can’t get wickets, he is capable of scoring match-winning knocks and he carries a pair of safe hands as well.
Concluding the interview, Axar said he prefers to look at short-term goals rather than looking far ahead.
“I can only set my goals based on the kind of role I am expected to perform. It shouldn’t happen that I am asked to perform some role and my goals don’t align with it,” he says. “I don’t believe in long-term planning. I just look at the present, what’s in front of me and just the short-term goals are what I look at.”
