2013 winner presents Best Fielder medal to Indian all-rounder after IND vs PAK 2025 Champions Trophy match [Watch]

The Indian team management continued their tradition of post-match best fielder ceremony in the dressing room after the 2025 Champions Trophy tie against Pakistan on Sunday (February 23) in Dubai. The Men in Blue registered a comfortable six-wicket victory in the match and moved one step closer to securing a spot in the semi-finals of the tournament.

After the game, India's fielding coach, T Dilip, applauded the players for their hard work on the field. He also announced Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, and Shreyas Iyer as the three contenders for the fielder of the match medal.

Dilip later welcomed former India player Shikhar Dhawan into the dressing room to announce the winner. Dhawan was part of India's squad when they won the 2013 Champions Trophy in England. He also won the golden bat in that tournament after ending up as the leading run-scorer.

Shikhar Dhawan announced Axar Patel as the winner and went on to give him the medal. Axar had a busy day on their field against Pakistan, effecting two run-outs and taking one catch.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) gave a glimpse of the ceremony in the dressing room by sharing a video on Instagram.

You can watch the video below:

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"The ball before I was visualizing" - Axar Patel on dismissing Imam-ul-Haq with a direct hit during IND vs PAK 2025 Champions Trophy clash

Speaking to the ICC after the match, Axar Patel opened up about his plan before his direct hit caught Pakistan opener Imam-ul-Haq short of the crease at the non-striker's end.

He said:

"The ball before I was visualizing that he may look for such a single, and I can pull off a direct hit. I was a few steps behind initially, but charged in. The movement was same as I expected and I was able to make a direct hit. After it happened, I told myself that it was good that I visualized the ball before, so I was prepared for it.

Shedding light on his preparations, Axar continued:

"When I came onto bowl in the powerplay, he had taken a single through mid-off where Harshit Rana was fielding. So, I thought that it must be in his plans, and whatever videos I had seen of him, he was always stepping out to take quick singles against spinners."

Axar Patel will be back in action next Sunday (March 2) when India play their final group match of the 2025 Champions Trophy against New Zealand in Dubai.