Axar Patel, right, with captain Suryakumar Yadav. (AP Photo)

NEW DELHI: India captain Suryakumar Yadav has revealed that vice-captain Axar Patel was “very angry” after being dropped from the playing XI during India’s victorious campaign at the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!Axar, a key member of India’s white-ball setup, was left out of two of the nine matches India played on their way to lifting the trophy for a record third time. Both omissions came in Ahmedabad, including the crucial Super 8 clash against South Africa — a match India lost by 76 runs.The decision drew criticism from fans and experts, while the team management insisted it was a tactical call, Suryakumar admitted the move did not sit well with Axar.

“He was very angry, and he should have been. He’s an experienced player, he leads a franchise. He should be angry. I apologised. I told him I made a mistake and I’m sorry, but it was a call taken for the team,” Suryakumar told The Indian Express.The India captain acknowledged that it was not an easy conversation with the all-rounder.“It was a hard conversation. He took it in his stride and we talked it through the next day,” he added.Despite the setback, Suryakumar said the heavy defeat to South Africa became a crucial turning point in India’s campaign.“India vs South Africa was the eye-opener. I never had any doubt in this team, but it tightened our screws. After that there was no option of coming back,” he said.The skipper explained that the team began treating every remaining game as a knockout.“For us, Zimbabwe was a pre-quarter-final. West Indies was the quarter-final. Then the semis and the final. We had to play every game like a knockout,” Suryakumar added.India responded emphatically after the loss, winning their remaining Super 8 matches before defeating England in the semi-final and New Zealand in the final.