Axar Patel‘s captaincy style puts the players at ease instantly and has also played a massive role in Delhi Capitals blazing start to this IPL season, reckons the team’s assistant coach Matthew Mott. The Capitals have won three games on the bounce and currently sits on the pole position in the points table. “He’s just got a great balance on cricket and life. He’ll just summarise the group and make sure the players are included. They’ve got a smile on their face. He doesn’t come across as being the only voice (in the team),” Mott said in the pre-match press conference here on Wednesday.

Mott said Axar uses the experience of other senior players in the squad like KL Rahul and Faf Du Plessis, a former Royal Challengers Bengaluru skipper, to good effect.

“He’s not taking it all on himself. He leverages a lot of the other senior players in the group. We mentioned KL, Faf as well. He’s got a lot of experience to draw on, particularly Faf. We had a productive meeting around that,” he said.

Mott also rated Axar as a level-headed person who realises the “fickle” nature of cricket.

“He’s played enough cricket to know that it can be a pretty fickle game at times. You’re well aware that when you’re winning, it’s all rosy.

“I like to think that he’s got that character where if we do have a bad day, he’ll be just as positive,” Mott added.

However, the former white-ball coach of England hoped Axar will utilise himself a tad more as a bowler.

The left-arm spinner has bowled just eight overs across the last three matches without taking any wickets.

“We were probably a little surprised that he didn’t bowl more. He felt like the other bowlers were doing well. Someone like Vipraj (Nigam) has come in and been a sensation for us.

“He probably took some overs where Axel might have bowled. Given his experience and time, I felt he had control of the game. I think in the matches coming forward, you’ll see him bowl a lot more,” he noted.

Mott, the Australian women’s World Cup-winning coach, patted Rahul for showing the flexibility to bat anywhere in the order.

“I thought KL in the last game was amazing to come in at short notice and play an innings like that to really set us up for the win. We’ve got a number of guys who can go in and open.

“I think what separates KL from a lot of people in the group is his ability to bat anywhere. He’s a class player,” he said.

Hinting that Rahul will have continued presence in the DC top-order, Mott said the hit-or-miss style of other opener Jake Fraser-McGurk demands an experienced batter at the other end.

“The role that Jake plays in every side he’s in, it’s high risk, but when he has his days out, it’s what is the goal. But he’s got full autonomy from all of our leadership.

“He’s going to be a player who busts matches open. We’re prepared with the depth that we’ve got to play like that,” he explained.

Faf to be assessed

Mott said veteran batter Du Plessis’ availability for the match against RCB is dependant on his fitness assessment during the nets.

The South African missed the match against Chennai Super Kings with an unspecified injury which later Mott said could be a groin niggle.

“The beauty of the schedule so far is that he’s now had a good break. He’ll get assessed by the physios with a view to playing. He certainly looks like he’s moving around a lot better from the naked eye,” he added.