IPL: Axar’s captaincy, a pleasant surprise
With six more matches to go, the 31-year-old will be tested further but he could indeed become DC’s missing puzzle piece.
New Delhi: When the Delhi Capitals announced Axar Patel as captain, the discourse around the decision had a hesitant feel to it. You have KL Rahul and Faf du Plessis in the squad and the franchise – still chasing their first IPL title – decided to appoint a new captain. It was a gamble but the 31-year-old has turned out to be a surprise package.
After eight matches, DC are atop the points table alongside Gujarat Titants with eight wins and 12 points. And while their batting and bowling departments seem to be aligning, what also seems to be ticking for them is Axar’s cool and calm captaincy.
He’s the opposite of overbearing. Neither loud, nor theatrical and seems to have the confidence of his team-mates. His chilled-out persona is making his bowlers feel less burdened and batters less tense and perhaps, that’s what a team hoping to right some wrongs required.
“He doesn’t complicate things,” his teammate Mohit Sharma said in a media interaction. “He keeps it light even if things aren’t going our way. He says, ‘What’s happened has happened, what’s going to happen will happen — but we can control the controllables.’”
Man-management
Rahul, for instance, had felt pressured when leading Lucknow Super Giants. Without getting into details, he had told broadcasters before the season that he was looking for a fresh start in a dressing room with a positive team environment.
Axar’s DC seems to be the ideal place. Rahul has scored 323 runs in seven matches and is averaging 64.60 so far.
His use of Kuldeep Yadav is yet another example of his quiet but smart man-management. Instead of over-bowling or underutilising him, Axar has managed his resources with the mindset of minimising error and maximizing return. The result is Kuldeep’s increasing confidence and his upward climb in the wicket-takers column with 12 wickets in 8 matches at an economy of 6.5.
Beyond the wins he has led DC to, he has also been in good touch with the bat himself, having scored 174 runs in 8 matches at an average of 29. He played important cameos against Rajasthan Royals, Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants. He may not have bowled as well as he would have liked – having picked up the solitary wicket against RR – but that could be down to his palm injury.
He backs himself. He trusts his instincts. But he also knows when to step back — like he did against RR, sending Tristan Stubbs ahead of him. Even in moments when he could have chased personal milestones, Axar hasn’t really abused his captain’s powers.
“It’s tempting to promote yourself up the order as a captain,” he jokingly admitted in a press conference. “But this is a team game. I have to put the team first.”
Striking a balance
In a format where captains are expected to be hyper-tactical and analytical, Axar strikes a balance between instinct and approach. For instance, he chose to improvise against RR, urging Mitchell Starc to go for yorkers against RR, even as the pitch was favouring short bouncers.
“We plan in the background,” he explains, “but I also look at who’s in form, what kind of day someone is having… sometimes you back your guy even if it goes against the data.”
Even when things don’t go to plan, unlike many captains, he dissects his errors in the post-match presentation. There seems to be a willingness to take ownership yet shrug off the burden with a bit of humour.
“I don’t know about the rest, but I believe that if you make a mistake, then what’s the harm in accepting it?” he said. “It’s not even a mistake per se… they are tactical decisions. Sometimes they come off, sometimes they don’t.”
Humourous and always joking, he may be a joy in the dressing-room but with a fun reputation like that, one also risks being taken lightly. “They can tell from my face if I am a little angry or serious,” he grinned. “I like to keep the environment lively but I have also drawn a line. You put in the work in the ground, and I don’t mind what you do. But the work comes first.”
It’s in this very balance between being light and being serious, between instinct and approach that Axar’s captaincy seems to be thriving. Not flashy or in-your-face but quietly effective. With six more matches to go, he will be tested further but he could indeed become DC’s missing puzzle piece.
