India won the Border Gavaskar Trophy with a 2-1 victory over Australia in the four-match Test series. After winning the first two Tests, India lost the third but managed to salvage a tie to to centuries by Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli. After the conclusion of the Test series, both teams have begun preparations for the next three-match ODI series.
Those who played well in the Tests and are participating in the ODIs would be expected to do well in the ODIs. After the end of the ODI series, the Men in Blue will turn their attention to the 16th season of the Indian Premier League, which is due to begin on March 31. The Delhi Capitals will be without skipper Rishabh Pant, thus David Warner has been chosen captain, with Axar Patel as his constable.
Axar Patel has improved dramatically as an all-rounder across formats in recent years. He was instrumental in the just finished Test series against Australia, as he came dangerously near to his first Test century. The 29-year-old pleased his Delhi Capitals coach Ricky Ponting, who described how Patel’s development as a powerful batter was boosted by “minor technical improvements” made when he represented the organisation.
“I’ve known Axar for a long time, and when I initially got to Mumbai, he was only a young guy in the team. “I’ve known that there’s been a certain degree of batting talent there that he hadn’t really been demonstrating at the IPL level or even at the international level, save from the past few of years,” Ponting told the ICC Review.
“With him, we made a few little technical adjustments. We just attempted to open him up a little more, giving him a little more access to the ball. He’s always been a fantastic offsider. His cover driving and cutting are on par with anyone’s. And, if anything, he was a touch too closed off to score properly on the leg side.
