"No one will talk about him" - Aakash Chopra demands more respect for Axar Patel, takes sly dig at India stars
Former India opener Aakash Chopra heaped praises on India's allrounder Axar Patel after his match-winning performance against England in the T20 World Cup 2024 semi-final against England. Axar Patel returned with figures of 3-23 in four overs to help India march into the final.
Axar came in to bowl in the powerplay when the situation was getting tough for India. England had raced to 26-0 in just three overs with Jos Buttler looking good on 23 off just 14 balls. The scars of 2022 had just started to begin when Axar removed Buttler off his first ball to remove England's best batter.
The left-arm spinner then got the big wickets of Jonny Bairstow and Moeen Ali to break the back of England's batting line-up. Axar's spell allowed India to tighten its grip on the game while Kuldeep Yadav made England's job even more difficult with a spell of 3-19 in four overs.
Aakash Chopra lauds Axar Patel after his match-winning exploits
While star players like Rohit Sharma, Rishabh Pant, Suryakumar Yadav, and Jasprit Bumrah have received a fair amount of attention for their performances, Axar Patel's performances often go unnoticed. But performing in a semi-final game is no mean feat and Axar produced a brilliant performance on the big day.
While speaking on a video through his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra lauded Axar Patel for his performance and claimed that his performance often goes unnoticed.
"Axar Patel was the Player of the Match. He is an incredible guy. I am crying and screaming from the Pakistan match that he is not getting the attention, importance and acknowledgment that he deserves. He is the Player of the Match but no one will talk about him tomorrow. However, Bapu's performance has been absolutely outstanding," Chopra said.
Chopra lauded Axar Patel for removing the dangerous Jos Buttler, which paved the way for England's collapse.
"In my opinion, 171 was too far away. You needed magical stuff to reach that total and only one batter was capable of that magic and his name is Jos Buttler. He started well and had hit in the first three overs but who came then? Bapu sehat ke liye tu toh haanikaarak hai," Chopra mentioned.
"He got Buttler out off the first ball of his first over. I had even tweeted that Axar should be brought. He came and picked up a wicket and then the wickets kept falling. Bumrah hit Salt's stumps and then Jonny Bairstow came and went because he also couldn't play Axar Patel," he added.
This Bapu is not those 'Ahimsa paramo dharma' - Aakash Chopra on Axar Patel
The former India batter summarized India's great performance and said that England's batters had no answers to the Indian bowlers.
"This Bapu is not those 'Ahimsa paramo dharma' (non-violence is the highest moral virtue). His photo will come on the note now. Moeen Ali ran down the pitch and got himself out. Sam Curran got out and took a review with him. Kuldeep Yadav got him out. Harry Brook batted for a little while. He was looking good but for how long could he have batted? He couldn't have done anything and he too got out," Chopra stated.
India thrashed England by 68 runs to book their place in the final, which will be played against South Africa on June 29 at Barbados.
