India all-rounder Axar Patel was on top of his game during the first ODI against England at Birmingham’s Edgbaston on Tuesday. Patel registered figures of 4/62 from 9.5 overs to help India dismiss England for 258.

He then performed brilliantly with the bat under pressure after the likes of Rohit Sharma (11) and Virat Kohli (5) failed to fire early on.

Patel walked out to bat at No 6 and scored 57 runs from 52 balls, slamming five fours and one six. The 32-year-old was involved in an unbeaten 102-run partnership with Washington Sundar for the fifth wicket.

Axar Patel joins elite list

Patel joined an elite list of Indian cricketers to have scored a half-century and taken four wickets in an away ODI match. He became the third Indian to do so, after Sachin Tendulkar and Hardik Pandya.

Tendulkar had slammed 141 during the third quarter-final of the Wills International Cup against Australia in Dhaka, and followed it up with figures of 4/38.

Pandya joined Tendulkar in this list almost 24 years later, as he registered figures of 4/24 and hit 71 runs from 55 balls. The Gujarat all-rounder also became the third Indian, after Yuvraj Singh and Pandya, to register a 50-plus score and take four wickets in an ODI against England. 

Talking about the first ODI, India defeated England by six wickets in Birmingham on Tuesday. England had won the toss and opted to bat first, but the hosts were restricted to 107/6 in the 22nd over.

However, Liam Dawson (68) and Joe Root (76*) forged a 121-run stand for the seventh wicket to take the hosts to 258, which was never going to be easy to defend.

In India’s reply, Rohit Sharma and Kohli were dismissed in the first powerplay, but skipper Shubman Gill (80) steadied the ship. However, Gill retired hurt on 80 after he sustained cramps in his right leg.

At that time, India were 144/2, with Gill and Shreyas Iyer having forged a 101-run stand. Iyer was dismissed in the 26th over, and KL Rahul followed suit in quick succession.

This left India in a spot of bother at 160/4 in the 28th over, but Sundar (52*) and Patel (57*) sealed the deal for India with six wickets and 28 balls to spare.

“I think I bowled under a particular area. I thought I have to bowl, you know, vary my pace and bowl stump to stump. And I did exactly what I wanted to do. And I’m lucky that I got the four wickets,” Patel, who was named the Player of the Match, said at the post-match presentation ceremony.

“And after that, in the batting, I think we got a very good start, and then we have to just know that we are ahead of the game. So we have to just rotate the strike, and we have to finish the game well,” he added.

The second ODI of the three-match series will be played at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff on Thursday.