IPL 2025: Axar Patel Relishes His Captaincy Role

Synopsis

Axar Patel, captain of Delhi Capitals, expressed his enjoyment in his leadership role after a thrilling Super Over victory against Rajasthan Royals at Arun Jaitley Stadium. He praised his team's performance and highlighted the significant contributions of players like Mitchell Starc and Abhishek Porel, leading them to the top of the points table.

Key Takeaways

Axar Patel enjoys his captaincy role.
Delhi Capitals won in a thrilling Super Over.
Mitchell Starc's performance was crucial in the victory.
Team dynamics and strategy were key to their success.
Delhi Capitals lead the points table with five wins.

New Delhi, April 17 (NationPress) The captain of Delhi Capitals, Axar Patel, expressed his satisfaction with his leadership position after an exhilarating Super Over victory against Rajasthan Royals in their sixth IPL match held at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Wednesday.

The home team scored 188/5 in their 20 overs, thanks to impressive performances from Abhishek Porel (49 off 37), Tristan Stubbs (34* off 18), and Axar Patel himself (34 off 14). In response, Rajasthan Royals came close to the target with half-centuries from Yashasvi Jaiswal and Nitish Rana. However, pace sensation Mitchell Starc played a crucial role for Delhi Capitals, leading them to victory in the Super Over.

In the post-match press conference, Patel discussed various topics, including the Super Over win, his style of captaincy, and his current form.

He stated, "As a captain, I’m enjoying my role. I was doing all this for state cricket as well. I know what to do and what not to do. When you get the chance to run the team according to you, and if you get a chance to play the way you want to play cricket, that’s the best thing. I'm enjoying it on the field and off the field."

When asked about participating in the Super Over, Patel humorously remarked, "Aisi situation mein main hi kyun aage aajata hoon (Why do I always come forward in such situations?) But these are the situations that show the character of the team. It was very good for me as a captain to see my team perform like this and clinch a win in such a situation."

Praising Starc for his exceptional bowling, Patel said, “Getting the reverse swing is one thing, but executing it is very important. He (Starc) was executing it really well under pressure. We already had discussions about the field placement during the team meetings. I just asked him to back himself.”

“Today, when he came to bowl the 18th over, I thought that he was executing it correctly; he knew where to bowl. He is such a big player and a legend for Australia. He has a very clear mindset as to how he is going to execute his plans even in the death overs,” the left-handed batter added.

Discussing his batting form, the 31-year-old stated, “I’ve been batting well for a year and a half. I bat according to what the team requires. In this match, we were maintaining that left-right combination, and that’s why I came out to bat a little late. It’s a team game, and as I said, I just do what the team needs.”

With this remarkable victory, the Axar Patel-led team has ascended to the top of the points table with five wins and 10 points from six matches. Their next challenge is against the Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad on Saturday.