“He Doesn’t Speak English” – Indian Star On Captaincy Perceptions Ahead Of IND vs SA 1st Test

Team India all-rounder Axar Patel opened up about how his English-speaking skills were questioned when he was appointed as the Delhi Capitals (DC) captain ahead of the 2025 IPL season. Despite the doubts, he led the team impressively, guiding them to a fifth-place finish and winning his first five matches as skipper.

Previously a key part of DC’s leadership group, Axar had even captained the side in Rishabh Pant’s absence during the 2024 season against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). After the mega auction reshuffle, he was chosen to lead the team over experienced names like KL Rahul and Faf du Plessis.

“Captaincy Is About Understanding Players, Not Speaking English” – Axar Patel

Axar Patel emphasized the need to change such perceptions, stating that leadership involves far more than just fluency in English.

“People start saying ‘oh he is not a captaincy material, he doesn’t speak English. How will he talk? Yeh hai, voh hai’ (This and that). Arre! Captain’s work is not to just talk. Captain’s work is to know the player and see how to get the best out of him. What’s his strength, what’s his weakness. Captain knows that I have this player and what I need to do to get work out of him (“kaisey kaam nikalwaana hai”). And in game situations, who to give the ball now,” Axar Patel told the Indian Express.

“But yeah if we say ‘personality’ chahiye, acha English bolna chahiye – that’s a perception made by the public based on their own thinking. I captained Delhi Capitals this year and got a lot of praise. I think more of this happens, more will change in the coming time. It’s important that people have to change their personal thinking. Stop thinking ‘oh his personality is good, he can speak English – so he is captain material’. One thing about captaincy is there should be no language barrier,” he added.

Before the start of the IPL 2025 season, Axar Patel captained Gujarat in the 2024 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, where the team finished third in their group and narrowly missed qualification for the knockout stage due to a lower net run rate.

He also served as Team India’s T20I vice-captain during the home series against England in early 2025. However, his tenure as deputy came to an end once Shubman Gill rejoined the squad.