Former Indian middle-order batter Mohammad Kaif has suggested that spinners like Ajaz Patel and Glenn Phillips can be found in every nook and corner of Delhi. The retired cricketer's statement came after Ajaz Patel and Glenn Phillips combined to fashion a 3-0 victory for New Zealand in the Test series on Indian soil.
Ajaz finished as New Zealand's leading wicket-taker in the three-Test series against India, taking 15 wickets in five innings at 23.80. The left-arm spinner had struggled until the final Test in Mumbai, but finished with 11 scalps at the Wankhede Stadium as the Kiwis eked out a 25-run victory.
Speaking to Nikhil Naz in a video shared on X, Kaif stated:
"Yehi main bata raha hoon aapko. Main jhoot nahin bol raha hoon. Glenn Phillips aur Ajaz Patel jaise spinner aapko Delhi ki RP Academy mein mil jaayenge. Sacchi bata raha hoon main. Ajaz Patel jo ball daal rahe hain aap unka pitch map dekhoge na, 2 ball short daal rahe hain, 2 full toss daal rahe hain, 2 length daal rahe hain aur wahan pe hum out ho rahe hain. 6 ball mein 2 thik daal raha hai wahan pe hamaare ballebaaz out ho gaye."
(I'm telling you and I'm not lying. I go to practice in the RP Academy in Delhi and there are spinners like Glenn Phillips and Ajaz Patel over there. If you see Ajaz's pitch map, he bowls two short balls, 2 full tosses, 2 length deliveries and our batters are getting out. Out of 6, he bowls 2 good balls and our batters are falling.)
"It's been three different surfaces and three different games" - Ajaz Patel
During a media conference, Ajaz opined that adapting to different conditions and persistence had been their strengths in this series. The 36-year-old said, as quoted by Cricbuzz:
"It's been three different surfaces and three different games, and I guess we're well aware that one of the challenges of going to Asia is that the conditions are going to change all the time and you have to be adaptable and even within the game the conditions change very quickly. I mean even in this Mumbai Test I was bowling...I think in the first innings and I felt like I was bowling really well but the wicket wasn't really turning and then I came back after Lunch and all of a sudden everything started happening."
