"She wanted to see me on TV and that was her last wish" - Team India all-rounder recalls keeping his word amid AUS vs IND 2025 T20Is

Team India all-rounder Axar Patel recalled a defining moment in his life and how he kept his word. He is with the Men in Blue, who are playing a five-match T20I series in Australia.

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Axar revealed that his grandmother had passed away while he was playing a match. Her last wish was to see him on TV representing the Indian team. On knowing the same, he took the sport more seriously and made playing for the country his goal. The all-rounder recalled how he told his father that he would fulfil his grandmother's last wish.

"My grandmom passed away but I was playing a match so could not come home and my dad did not even tell me so that I could focus. When I came back after two days, he told me and cried a lot. He told me that she wanted to see me on TV and that was her last wish. I became very serious after that incident and decided that it would be my goal that I have to come on TV wearing the blue jersey. I told my dad that even if it is for just one day, I will come on TV wearing the blue jersey and that day came in 2014. Both of us cried a lot that day when I got selected," he said during a conversation with journalist Vimal Kumar on his YouTube channel.

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The moment came in 2014 when Axar made his debut for India. It was in an ODI against Bangladesh at Mirpur. While he did not get to bat in that game, he returned figures of 1/59 from ten overs with the ball.

A year later, in 2015, Axar also made his T20I debut against Zimbabwe at Harare. In 2021, he made his Test debut against England at Chennai. The star all-rounder currently plays all three formats for the Indian team.

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Axar Patel's childhood friend opens up on Team India star

Axar Patel's childhood friend revealed how the India all-rounder was confident right from his early days. He added that Axar was called by Sri Lankan legend Sanath Jayasuriya's name as well, for the way he batted.

"Axar had the confidence right from when he became captain for the first time against Ahmedabad. He says that he is a bowler, but he is actually a batter. We have seen him. He has scored a lot of runs in many matches. He would bat very well in school tournaments as well, so his school friends named him Jayasuriya and he would play like that too," he said.

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Talking about Axar's nature, his childhood friend stated that the all-rounder was simple and down to earth, just like before. He mentioned that the 31-year-old would prioritise his friends and be there for them whenever he could.

Axar has represented India in 14 Tests, 71 ODIs, and 82 T20Is so far. He has scored 646 runs with 55 wickets in the longest format. In ODIs, he has scored 858 runs to go with 75 wickets. Axar has 637 runs in T20Is with 79 wickets to his name.

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Edited by Rishab Vm

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