(Cricket new) The Delhi Capitals (DC) picked up their fourth win of the TATA IPL 2024 season by defeating the Gujarat Titans (GT) by four runs at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi on Wednesday. After setting a 225-run target, Delhi picked the win over Gujarat in a final-over thriller which put them in 6th position in the points table. Post match, Axar Patel (66 runs, 1/28) spoke exclusively on JioCinema’s Match Centre Live about him getting promoted to No. 3 in the batting line up, his bowling and also shared his thoughts on the Impact Player rule.
“I didn’t know beforehand that I would bat at No. 3. When our batting came, they told me that they were thinking I should go at No. 3 because three spinners were playing. First, they asked Rishabh and then we discussed, and I said that I’ll go. Rishabh also wanted to go, but then I told him that they’ll use spinners later as well, and he should go at No. 4 because he can handle the middle-overs.”
On his bowling, Patel said – “I am not doing anything new. I am just adding variations to the pace. I wasn’t confident about bowling my slow ball earlier, but I have found that confidence regardless of the batter being right or left-handed. The pace variations are making a big difference now. With the high-scoring games we’re seeing, it’s important to have the right attitude. You can’t go thinking you’ll get hit for runs, so every time I go, I go in with an attacking mindset. If he hits me on my good balls, I’ll live with it.”
Patel also shared his thoughts on the Impact Player rule – “As an all-rounder, I feel that an all-rounder’s role is in danger with the Impact Player rule. Every team is looking to play either a pure batter or a pure bowler as the Impact Player, and the all-rounders are not being used. With the Impact Player, every team goes into the match thinking they have six batters or bowlers, depending on if they are batting or bowing. This also creates a lot of confusion sometimes. “
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