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Axar Patel has attributed India’s successful T20 World Cup 2024 campaign to the team’s consistently positive dressing room environment. He highlighted that the atmosphere nurtured under the leadership of former coach Rahul Dravid played a crucial role.
Even during challenging times post the WTC final and ODI World Cup 2023, Dravid’s adept management ensured a supportive atmosphere, which Axar emphasized as pivotal to their recent triumph.
Axar Patel discusses India’s positive dressing room atmosphere.
In an interview with Times Now, Axar Patel revealed that India’s current dressing room ethos has been cultivated over the past two years rather than emerging suddenly. He emphasized that throughout this period, the team has maintained a consistently positive atmosphere, irrespective of match outcomes.
“It’s not like the atmosphere was created just for the World Cup, it’s been in the works for the last two years. When we lost the 50 overs World Cup, the atmosphere was the same. The result doesn’t matter, the process does and this has been the philosophy of the Indian team. We were trying to control what we could and rest follows,” Axar said.
Axar also commented on the medal ceremony orchestrated by former fielding coach T Dilip. The left-arm spinner emphasized that the entire team joined in the celebration, irrespective of who received the medal.
“The team culture has been built over a period of time everyone enjoys each other’s success – whether it’s the fielding ceremony – where everyone enjoys it even though only one player is winning it,” Axar said.
“Any moment on the ground is celebrated, not from far but close quarters. The team was working towards one goal and there was so negativity since we started our World Cup campaign and that’s what reflected on the ground and in our performance,” he added.
‘Best fielder’ award well appreciated by fans
The ceremony honoring the ‘Best Fielder of the Match’ was a highlight after each game, masterminded by former fielding coach T Dilip. His innovative approach to recognizing fielding prowess became widely acclaimed during the ODI World Cup 2023. The BCCI showcased several videos of these awards on their social media platforms.
Following Rahul Dravid’s tenure as India’s head coach, T Dilip also concluded his coaching stint. India, under Dravid’s guidance, achieved unprecedented success, reaching three ICC tournament finals in a single year. Despite losses in the WTC and ODI World Cup finals to Australia, the Men in Blue clinched the T20 World Cup 2024 title by defeating South Africa in a thrilling final.
Axar Patel himself had a standout performance in the T20 World Cup 2024, excelling with both bat and ball. He claimed 9 wickets in 8 matches at an average of 19.22 and an economy rate of 7.86. Additionally, Axar contributed with the bat, scoring 92 runs at a strike rate of 139.39, including a crucial 47 off 31 balls in the championship decider.
