India all-rounder Axar Patel recently revealed a life-changing piece of advice from MS Dhoni that helped him become a better and more confident player.
Speaking to The Times of India, Axar said Dhoni advised him to believe more in his batting abilities, which played a key role in reviving his confidence after a difficult phase in his career.
“When I got dropped in 2018, I worked very hard on my batting. When MS Dhoni was mentor of the 2021 T20 World Cup team, he told me that in my earlier days, under his captaincy, I put pressure on myself by thinking I had to perform all the time, rather than simply believing that I was a capable batter. Slowly I started implementing what Mahi bhai had told me and I regained my confidence,” Axar said.
Axar began his international career under Dhoni’s captaincy. However, he was dropped during the middle phase of his career before making a strong comeback. Now, he is an important member of the Indian team across all three formats.
Recently, Axar was also appointed vice-captain for the ICC T20 World Cup 2026. Under head coach Gautam Gambhir, he has even been promoted up the batting order on several occasions.
One of Axar’s most impactful innings came in the final of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024, where he stitched a crucial 72-run partnership with Virat Kohli. That stand helped India reach a competitive total of 176. Axar was the second-highest scorer in the match after Kohli, scoring 47 runs off 31 balls.
The 31-year-old made his Test debut in 2021 and has maintained a solid average of 34.40 in the longest format of the game.
Axar also spoke about his evolving role with the bat and the trust shown by the team management.
“If I’ve been sent up the order, that means the team trusts me and I have the talent to perform this role. When I go out to bat, I don’t think I am a floater. The team management tells me that I’m not sent to blindly accelerate the scoring or play out a difficult spell or target a particular spinner. I am given a role like any other specialist batter,” he added.
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