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DC Mentor Kevin Pietersen Reveals Why Axar Patel Didn't Bowl In Powerplay Vs KKR

Anurag Dasgupta

Why Axar didn't bowl Vs KKR [Source: AP Photo]Why Axar didn't bowl Vs KKR [Source: AP Photo]

Normally, the Delhi Capitals captain, Axar Patel bowls in the power-play and takes the responsibility of leading the attack in the most critical stage of the game when there are just two fielders outside the circle. However, against Kolkata Knight Riders, he decided not to bowl and this baffled a lot of people.

Axar, the left-arm spinner has been economical in the power-play and also took wickets in the last game against RCB at the same venue. However, on Tuesday, he didn't bowl a single over in the power-play and the reason has been revealed.

Why Axar didn't bowl in power-play?

During the strategic timeout of the KKR innings, DC mentor, Kevin Pietersen was having a chat with the official broadcaster and revealed the reason why Axar held himself back. As per him, Axar didn't use himself due to the Sunil Narine factor.

For a lefty like Narine, Axar's stock delivery will come into the batter and it will make Narine's job easier as he can easily clear the front leg and target the leg-side region. Hence, the captain of DC decided to keep himself for the overs post power-play. In the power-play, it is easy to clear the field since only two fielders are outside the circle, and Narine is a quality hitter of spin-bowling, hence, Axar avoided facing him.

DC pull things back after fiery start

DC elected to bowl first and instantly regretted the decision as Rahmanullah Gurbaz started with aggression and took the DC bowlers to the cleaners. He scored a quick-fire 26 off 12 and alongside Narine (27) laid a solid foundation. However, DC pulled things back with a couple of quick wickets after the powerplay.