Sunil Gavaskar has heaped massive praise on Axar Patel for his fielding during the India vs England ICC T20 World Cup 2026 semifinal. According to him, India is not missing Ravindra Jadeja because of Axar’s presence.

India posted 253/7, with Sanju Samson scoring 89 runs, and England were in the hunt following Jacob Bethell’s stunning century, but superb fielding by Axar impacted the visitors’ momentum.

England captain Harry Brook mistimed a shot on Jasprit Bumrah’s delivery, and Axar Patel ran backwards to complete an unbelievable catch. Later, when Will Jacks was adding importance runs with Bethell, Axar caught the ball near the boundary rope but lost his balance. However, he tossed the ball towards Shivam Dube, who completed the catch to get rid of Jacks.

“Brook could have taken the game away but Axar took an unbelievable catch running 24 meters. He played an important role in Will Jacks’ dismissal. He grabbed the ball and passed it to Shivam Dube,” Gavaskar said.

Earlier, Axar had grabbed Phil Salt’s catch in the cover region, giving a wicket to all-rounder Hardik Pandya.

“This shows his intelligence. It separates the greats from good. Axar is one of the finest Indian players. Team India is not missing Ravindra Jadeja because of his presence. He needs to improve as a bowler and that would happen with experience. He is becoming a better player every year and being a vice-captain, he is improving every year. He is thinking about everyone’s game,” he added.

Jacob Bethell kept his team in the game with a hundred. Despite losing wickets from the other end, Bethell took the game into the final of the contest. He scored 105 runs off 48 balls. with the help of eight fours and seven sixes.

“Jacob Bethell showed that he belongs to the top level. He scored a hundred against a team like India in the World Cup semifinal. We saw him scoring a hundred in the Ashes as well. The Aussies don’t let you score a hundred in Australia.

“The way he batted at the Wankhede Stadium was nothing short of extraordinary. We have seen him in the fifty-over format. Bethell has been promoted in T20I cricket and it has made a difference. It gives him a chance to play more overs. However, he failed to win a game for England despite scoring hundred,” Gavaskar mentioned.

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