Watch: Axar Patel creams lofted straight drive, launches special pick-up for consecutive sixes off red-hot Mitchell Starc
Watch: Axar Patel creamed two spectacular sixes off consecutive deliveries against a red-hot Mitchell Starc on an otherwise disappointing outing for the Indian batting lineup in the second India-Australia ODI in Vizag.
Having been put in to bat on an overcast afternoon, India’s batting crumbled under the spell of Mitchell Starc and company. Starc finished with figures of 5-53, with Sean Abbott and Nathan Ellis chipping in with three and two wickets respectively, bowling India out for 117 in 26 overs.
Virat Kohli was the top scorer for India with a 35-ball 31, followed by Axar Patel, who ran out of partners once again, and was stranded on 29 not out. In his brief innings of 29 balls, Axar oozed confidence gained in the Test series and even took down the star of the day – Mitchell Starc.
India had lost two wickets off two deliveries in the 24th over. At 103-9 with just Mohammad Siraj for company, Axar decided that there was no point in hanging around.
Starc came back into the attack for his eighth over and aimed at Axar’s stumps. After a wide down the leg side, he missed his length by a bit, dishing up a slot ball on leg stump. In the sublime form that he is, Axar was never going to miss out on this.
He simply extended his hands to loft the on-drive over long on for the first six of the innings. The next ball was another full delivery going down the leg side, which he effortlessly picked up over the fine-leg boundary to make it two sixes in a row, much to the delight of the otherwise sombre crowd.
