Axar show: NZ batters get the axe

By Mohammed Rumman Khan | NT

Meet the star, Axar Patel, who is one of the strong contestants for ‘Test debutant of the year.’ For this gentleman, Test cricket is proving to be a walk in the park. The leftarm spinner picked up his 5th five-wicket haul in his 7th innings in Test cricket as he ran through the heart of NZ’s middle order on day three of the first Test of a two-match Test series in Kanpur.

Axar became the joint second-fastest bowler for the fewest innings taken for five-wicket hauls in the history of Test cricket with merely 7 innings. Ahead of him is Rodney Hogg (1978) who got there in just 6 innings. He has tied with the likes of Charlie Turner (1887) and Tom Richardson (1895). One can say Axar became the first player in more than 100 years to achieve this feat in Tests.

He has picked up 32 wickets in just four Tests with an innings to be played.

At the end of day three, India reached 14 for one in their second innings after dismissing Kiwis for 296, courtesy Axar for leaving his side in the pink at Green Park Stadium.

Axar struggled on day two as his accuracy on the leg stump line was of little or no value and couldn’t purchase much assistance from the track. But overnight break would have helped him. He might have pulled his socks up and come with a plan to unsettle the Black Caps. Pace, accuracy, and consistency were on display and he nicely varied the pace of his deliveries.