Suryakumar Yadav and Gautam Gambhir had a chat with Axar Patel ahead of the Super Eight clash against South Africa, which saw him miss out at the expense of Washington Sundar. Sitanshu Kotak revealed that information, adding that the experienced all-rounder’s morale will not be affected by the selection call.
“See, obviously, Suryakumar Yadav and Gautam Gambhir both spoke to him. Which is obvious, whether we say it or not,” the batting coach revealed after India’s demoralizing 76-run loss against South Africa at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. It was a massive blow to the defending champions who now need to beat Zimbabwe with a significant margin and get past West Indies to progress to the next round. “We thought that an off-spinner was needed because three left-handers upfront. We got the wickets in the beginning. Washington didn’t bowl in the Powerplay.
“But, actually, he was supposed to bowl in a Powerplay. So, that can change according to the match. For that reason, this combination was decided. And the rest – what you are saying about confidence – Axar is such a player; he has played so much and performed so much, he doesn’t lack confidence. It was very clear from him, and from the head coach and the captain, what we are thinking and why we are doing this.”
