India vs England 2021: Axar Patel on the verge of breaking a unique record in the fourth test

Axar Patel has had quite the dream start to his test career with India as he has spun a web around the English batters in the ongoing test series. The southpaw was supposed to make his debut in the first test in Chennai but a late knee injury meant he had to be replaced with Shabahz Nadeem who struggled to bowl good lines and lengths on a pitch that offered little to no assistance for the spinners.

Axar made his debut in the second test and picked up 2 wickets in the first innings, playing second fiddle to Ravichandran Ashwin. In the second innings however, he came into his own and got a five-wicket-haul. In the third test on his home turf, he picked up two consecutive fifers to end up with 11 wickets in the match to lead India to a 2-1 series lead. He would now look to continue the good performances in the fourth test as well.

Axar Patel could break records if he continues in the same vein

Now, Axar Patel has picked up three consecutive five-wicket-hauls right from his debut test already. He is only the third bowler to achieve the feat after Australia’s Clarrie Grimmett did it in 1925 and Tom Richardson of England did it in 1983. Neither of the two went on to pick up another five-wicket-haul which means nobody has done it in four consecutive innings from his debut test.

Axar Patel could achieve the feat if he picks up a fifer in the first innings of the fourth test that begins tomorrow. Further, there is another record that the left-armer can break but it’s quite a stretch and would need a remarkable performance to better. The most successful bowler in test cricket after his first three matches is India’s Narendra Hirwani who picked up 31 wickets. Axar is currently on 18 which means he would need 13 to equal the record.

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