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Xtra Time Web Desk: The stump mikes at Narendra Modi Stadium revealed shouts of “Jayasuriya, left mey ja” from India wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant. You might be wondering who is Pant addressing as Jayasurya. Well it is the nickname of Team India’s current spin bowling sensation Axar Patel. The left arm spinner has been a breath of fresh air and is reminding the utility of Ravindra Jadeja. Axar, who hails from Nadiad in Gujarat has two five wicket hails in his kitty in his first two test of his career.

Axar would not have got an opportunity to play test cricket for India had Ravindra Jadeja was not injured. The all rounder from Sourashtra is yet to recover to full fitness. Here lies the success of Axar Patel as he grabbed the opportunity with both hands.

Coming back to Axar’s nickname, it dates back to his childhood days. It was given to him by his teammates at his childhood cricket academy in Kheda from where he began his journey. The mornings would be spent training and the evenings would be filled with tennis-ball cricket under lights. This is where he picked up the moniker ‘Nadiad ka Jayasuriya” from his teammates.

The reason for him to be called after the dashing Sri Lankan opener was the power with which he hit the ball. Everyone in his district wanted him to play for their team but as he got selected for the district and later for Gujarat age-group teams, he realised that he would have to give up tennis-ball cricket. A young Axar was passionate about his cricket since childhood days. He used to borrow money from his father and enroll his team in local tournaments.

But very few know that Axar Patel became a bowler not by choice. Patel himself never wanted to be a bowler. However, when he went to the National Cricket Academy during his under-19 days, the coaches there felt that he could become a decent spinner. He did try to learn the nuances of spin bowling from M Venkatramana and Sunil Joshi. It was just the beginning of a success story of a spinning all rounder who can be handy with both bat and ball across any formats.

The journey of Axar Patel wasn’t smooth as you might think. Hailing from Nadiad, Axar and his family stays in a small bungalow 60 kms from Ahmedabad. His father met a life threatening accident while he went for a midnight stroll for tea with friends. The left side of his skull was severely damaged. It was young Axar’s effort that brought back Rajesh Patel from the doorstep of death. Axar’s father was in coma and had total memory loss. But Axar did not lose hope and did what any offspring would have done. He poured all his resources into his father’s treatment and was ready to fly him abroad.

There is an interesting story about him being called from Akshar to Axar. The name-change, as the story goes, was a typo from the school principal on a certificate. Akshar decided to remain Axar.

As the 28 year old was bamboozling the English batsmen on his homeground (Narendra Modi Stadium) on the first day of the Pink Ball Test, the Patel family in Nadiad would be the happiest.