“If There Was Ever A Weakness…”: Ricky Ponting Reveals How Axar Patel Improved His Batting | Cricket News

Former Australian skipper Ricky Ponting on Tuesday revealed how “little technical changes” made whereas taking part in for Delhi Capitals helped Axar Patel turn into an efficient batter for India. Ponting is hoping to “get a bit more out of him” when he turns up for Delhi Capitals on this IPL. Axar (264 runs) has impressed in the course of the Border-Gavaskar Test sequence towards Australia, slamming three half-centuries to emerge because the second highest scorer for India behind Virat Kohli (297 runs) from 5 innings. “I’ve known Axar for a long time and he was only a young boy in the squad at Mumbai when I first went there,” Ponting instructed the ICC Review.

“I’ve known that there’s been a certain amount of batting skill there that really, apart from the last couple of years, he hadn’t really been showing at IPL level or even at international level.

“There have been a couple of little approach adjustments that we made with him. We simply opened up his hips and his shoulders a bit bit. So he was a bit extra chest-on in the direction of the right-arm quick bowlers.” The 29-year-old bowling all-rounder did not make his IPL debut for MI in 2013. He flourished during his five-year stint at Kings XI Punjab and emerged as one of the best white-ball performers with some good show for the Delhi Capitals over the last four seasons.

Ponting, who is the coach of Delhi Capitals, said Axar used to struggle against the short ball early in his career.

“If there was ever a weak point in his recreation, it was the quick ball that was form of directed at his physique. The cause that he was a bit weak in that space was he was too side-on, and the ball was at all times form of in behind his proper shoulder,” Ponting said.

“We simply tried to open him up a bit bit, which gave him a bit bit extra entry to the ball. He’s at all times been a gorgeous offside participant. You know, his cowl driving and slicing is pretty much as good as anybody’s. And if something, he was just a bit bit too blocked off to have the ability to rating nicely on the leg facet.

“We tweaked a few things there and because he’s such a good young person to work with, and he’s obviously very talented, so therefore he was a fast learner and was able to pick things up really quickly and change his technique enough to show really, really good improvement really early on.”

“I want to get a bit more out of him at DC this year”

Impressed together with his batting, Ponting desires to advertise Axar a bit up the order to get extra out of him on this IPL.

“I want to get a bit more out of him at the Delhi Capitals this year, that’s for sure,” Ponting mentioned.

“A few times last year we sort of batted him up a little bit higher. I think he’s good enough to bat No.6 probably in an IPL team.” Ponting additionally feels Axar is able to batting at No.6 or No.7 for India within the longest format.

“He’s good enough to bat at six or seven in a Test match team as well,” he mentioned.

“The higher he bats in first-class cricket, and if he plays some more Test cricket even outside of India, then I think he could hold down a six or seven spot in a Test team as well.

“He’s the form of participant that I believe may make quite a lot of first-class lots of. That’s the place it is bought to begin for him, possibly get some help in his state crew and possibly bat a bit bit up the order there.”