Axar Patel catch (Source: Screengrab)
India's fielding has been in question for the entire tournament as the Suryakumar Yadav-led side have one of the worst catching efficiencies in this edition. There were a lot of questions for the England game, but Axar Patel put the doubts to rest as he pulled off brilliant effort in the powerplay to put India in the driving seat.
India drew the first blood on Hardik Pandya's first ball of the spell when Axar Patel took a brilliant catch. For the unversed, Pandya appreciated the effort and planted a kiss on Axar's cheek. The ball went high up in the air and Patel did not make any mistake to send Phil Salt back in the hunt.
Axar Patel Reminds Fans Of Kapil Dev With Brilliant Effort
Axar's best moment came when Jasprit Bumrah came to bowl. The right-arm seamer bowled a slower one to test Harry Brook, who fell into the trap and mistimed the shot. The ball was high in the air but far from Axar, who was standing in the 30-yard circle.
The India vice-captain was hopeful of the chance and ran 24 metre and didn't take his eye off the delivery. At the end moment, Axar put in a dive and took a brilliant catch, probably the catch of the tournament.
The entire Indian team ran to celebrate the extra-ordinary effort with Axar Patel, who has made it a habit to grab breathtaking stunners in knockout games.
The fans quickly took to social media platforms where they compared Axar's efforts with Kapil Dev, who took a brilliant running backward catch of Viv Richards to bring India back in the hunt and eventually guide the team to their maiden World Cup title.
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Axar Patel Spreads Magic With The Ball
Axar Patel did not only contribute in the field but he is spreading magic by rolling his arms. Notably, Axar came to ball and picked up a wicket in his first over. He leaked two sixes but picked up the crucial wicket of Tom Banton.
With the bat, Axar Patel didn't get enough chance to show his magic and faced just two deliveries, scoring two runs. Although, Pandya denied him a single in the last over of the first innings.
England Fight Back Despite Axar's Efforts
Axar's fielding efforts helped India reduce England to 38/2. However, the Three Lions took on Hardik Pandya and Varun Chakaravarthy. At the time of writing this article, England are 120/4 after 10 overs and the match has reached an exciting stage.
Jacob Bethell is playing the innings of his life and scored 49 (18), which featured three fours and five sixes. Further, Will Jacks, who has been England's best player in this tournament is playing alongside Bethell. England now require 129 runs to win in final 58 deliveries.
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