Ahead of IPL 2023, Delhi Capitals have been dealt a major blow with their captain Rishabh Pant being ruled out of the upcoming season. Coach Ricky Ponting has already begun to formulate plans on how to make up for this setback. Having noticed Axar Patel’s outstanding performance in the Border Gavaskar Trophy, Ponting is pushing for his promotion up the batting order to harness his full potential for DC during this season. Follow all the Indian Premier League 2023 action on InsideSport.IN!
Axar Patel became an effective Indian batter after making little technical changes while playing for Delhi Capitals, according to Ricky Ponting.
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CHECK OUT Ricky Ponting’s BIG plans for Axar Patel at Delhi Capitals in absence of Rishabh Pant, IPL 2023
In this IPL, Ponting hopes to “get a bit more out of Axar.”
In the Border-Gavaskar Test series against Australia, Axar (264 runs) smashed three half-centuries to become India’s second highest scorer behind Virat Kohli (297 runs).
When I first went to Mumbai, Axar was only a young boy in the squad,” Ponting told the ICC Review.
Apart from the last couple of years, he hadn’t really been showing batting skill at IPL level or even at international level.
Ricky Ponting says he wants a bit more from Axar Patel at DC in 2023.
He didn’t make his IPL debut for MI in 2013. We just changed his technique a little bit. We opened up his hips and shoulders a little bit. He was a bit more chest-on with fast bowlers with a right arm. With some outstanding performances for the Delhi Capitals over the last four seasons, he emerged as one of the best white-ball performers during his five-year stint at Kings XI Punjab.
Axar struggled against the short ball early in his career, according to Ponting, who coaches the Delhi Capitals.
He was a bit weak in that area because he was too side-on, and the ball always sort of landed behind his right shoulder,” Ponting said.
I just tried to open him up a little bit, so he had more access to the ball. You know, he’s always been an excellent offside player. He’s a great cover driver and cutter. He just wasn’t able to score well on the leg side because he was blocked off a little too much.
“We tweaked a few things there, and since he’s such a good young person to work with, and he’s obviously very talented, so he was a fast learner and was able to pick things up quickly and change his technique enough to show a great deal of improvement from the start.”
This year, I hope to get a little more out of him at DC”
In the absence of Rishabh Pant, Ricky Ponting reveals his BIG plans for Axar Patel at the Delhi Capitals this year, check it out!
Ponting wants to promote Axar up the order in this IPL because he’s impressed with his batting.
Ponting said he hoped to get more from him at the Delhi Capitals this year.
“We batted him up a bit last year. I think he’s good enough to bat at No.6 in an IPL team.” Ponting believes Axar can bat at No.6 or No.7 for India in the longest format as well.
“He’s good enough to bat at six or seven in a Test match team,” he said.
The higher he bats in first-class cricket, and if he plays more Test cricket even outside of India, I think he could hold down a six or seven spot in a Test team.
I think he’s the type of player who could hit a lot of first-class hundreds. That’s where it has to start for him, maybe get some support from his state team and bat up the order.”
