While Hashim Amla set-up the game for Kings XI Punjab with a sparkling 40-ball 65, Axar Patel pitched in with a quick-fire 17-ball 34 to help set the Gujarat Lions a formidable task. The left-arm spinner then returned to claim the key wickets of Suresh Raina and Dwayne Smith, in the process reaching the 50 IPL wickets milestone.

“I didn’t know until you told me that I had completed 50 wickets for the team. I am very happy to know that,” he said reacting to the news that he had reached the 50-wickets milestone.

It’s the “Ax effect!” he said and gestured, before going on to add, “My parents are here (today), so it feels especially great.”

Speaking about his journey with KXIP, a visibly thrilled and grateful Axar said, “I think it has been a great journey. I feel I had a dream debut through Kings XI Punjab because immediately afterwards I played for India. I got the platform that I needed. So, I think playing for Kings XI Punjab feels like a dream debut to me.”

Sunday’s match against the Gujarat Lions was not only a momentous occasion for the all-rounder on a personal front, but also his team who halted their four-match losing streak. “The way we were performing so far, if our bowling was clicking, then the batting wasn’t, and vice-versa. In that context, the win was most important. We had lost four matches back-to-back and we needed to get ourselves back on the track. We were telling ourselves that we have to do what we have been doing and not think much.”

He reiterated what J Arun Kumar had said ahead of the game; the KXIP Batting Coach had asked for “the batting and bowling to click together at the same time.” Axar was glad that “it all came together today.”

Axar himself had made a valuable contribution with the bat before returning to claim wickets. Speaking about his approach to build on the platform set up by Hashim Amla, he said, “I had come in with the mindset that I will hit whatever ball I get (in my area). (However) it wasn’t that I have to hit every single ball that I face. When there are two-three overs left, you know that you have so many number of balls remaining and know what you have to do. I backed my strength and I hit sixes in my area.”

Elaborating on the wickets of Suresh Raina and Smith, he explained, “The wicket was a bit slow and it was gripping also later. I was just trying to ensure that I am not predictable. I was bowling a quicker delivery then followed up with a slower one. I bowled one a little outside to Raina and then another one inside (coming in). That was the team plan, that I have to bowl in a way that I am not predictable and I was successful.”

Besides his all-round contribution in the win against Lions, Axar has been the team’s go to man on various occasions. Speaking about his role as a floating batsman in the team, he said, “I believe that every batsman has to bat according to the team’s need. If I am sent in to bat in at No. 3 then I have to bat according to the requirement there. I enjoy whatever position that I am sent in to bat. I don’t take pressure because if I do it will affect my performance. I enjoy the game and I perform.”

“I have been playing with this team for four years now. So I know our practice routines and what kind of line-up we will have. I back myself and I bowl according to the team’s requirement. I think about what the batsman is doing, the position he is batting at, the over number in the innings, the batsman’s strengths and then bowl accordingly which is what has helped me be successful,” he explained while discussing his bowling and journey with the team.

Speaking about his evolution as a cricketer over the years, he said, “I think there have been a lot of changes (in my game). On the bowling front, I am not very predictable now. I am using variations. And in batting too I don’t just go out and hit; I bat according to the requirement of the team. I think that is a big thing for me - the way I have been playing, it is not like it has been the same Axar for four years. I have improved bit by bit through the years as it should be and that makes me happy.”