Duleep Trophy | Axar Patel shines with bat and ball as India D seizes control

Debayan Sinha

ByDebayan Sinha, SportsCafe Editor

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Axar Patel emerged as the lone warrior for India D, propelling them to a total of 164 on the opening day of the Duleep Trophy in Anantapur. The left-arm spinner showcased his all-round brilliance, scoring 86 runs and later claiming two crucial wickets that left India C struggling at 91/4 at stumps.

‌Brief score: IND C 91/4 [Porel 32*, Indrajith 15; Rana 2/13] trail IND D 164 [Axar 86, Arshdeep 13; Vyshakh 3/19] by 73 runs at Stumps on Day 1
India C's decision to bowl after winning the toss paid immediate dividends as Anshul Kamboj removed Atharva Taide in the very first over. A rapid top-order collapse ensued with Shreyas Iyer, Devdutt Padikkal, and Yash Dubey all falling quickly, reducing India D to 24/4 within seven overs. Ricky Bhui’s dismissal in the 11th over deepened the crisis, but Srikar Bharat's arrival at the crease offered some stability. Axar Patel, however, was the mainstay for India D, anchoring the innings while wickets tumbled around him. By the time Saransh Jain was dismissed in the 31st over, India D had slumped to 76/7 at Lunch.

Upon resumption, Himanshu Chauhan dismissed Hashit Rana, bringing Arshdeep Singh to the crease to join Axar. The two offered much-needed resistance, with Axar reaching a half-century off 78 balls. Arshdeep provided solid support, and together they forged an 84-run partnership that lifted India D to 159/8 after 47 overs. However, both fell in quick succession, and India D were eventually bowled out for 164 by Tea.

India C had a shaky start after Tea as Harshit Rana struck twice, dismissing Sai Sudharsan in the fifth over and Ruturaj Gaikwad in the seventh. Rajat Patidar and Aryan Juyal steadied the innings somewhat, taking the score to 36/2 after 15 overs. But Axar Patel’s magic with the ball continued as he broke their 26-run partnership by dismissing Juyal, followed by a vital breakthrough in removing Patidar. By stumps, India C found some stability, with Abishek Porel and Baba Indrajith putting together a 48-run stand and closing the day at 91/4 after 33 overs.

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