Australian pacer Mitchell Starc felt Delhi Capitals (DC)‘s new captain Axar Patel was ‘calm’ and ‘fantastic’ on his full-time debut in the role against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in IPL 2025 on Monday. Capitals won the thrilling last-over contest by one wicket to start their season on the perfect note. Axar bowled an economical three-over spell of 18 runs in the first innings and Starc returned figures of 3/42 to restrict LSG to 209/8 despite some serious power-hitting by Mitchell Marsh (72 off 36) and Nicholas Pooran (70 off 30). In reply, Delhi lost a few quick wickets, but Ashutosh Sharma’s stunning 66 (31) took them over the line. Axar also contributed with a quick cameo knock of 22 off 11 balls. “He’s been pretty calm,” Starc said of Axar on JioHotstar after the match. “This is the first time I’ve shared a dressing room with him. Having seen him from the other side of the field, it’s impressive how he has developed into such a dominant all-rounder in international cricket today. Even the intent he showed with the bat tonight played a crucial role in getting us on our way. He’s been fantastic.” After the match, Axar spoke about how things went a bit ‘up and down’ in terms of his decisions but promised to learn from his mistakes. Starc also said that the all-rounder was not alone in Capitals’ leadership and has the support of seniors like Faf du Plessis (also the vice-captain) and Tristan Stubbs. “Of course, we also have Faf Du Plessis, who has captained extensively in both international and franchise cricket. I think we have a great mix of senior players – experienced leaders like Faf and Tristan Stubbs, who have been with this team for a while. There’s a wealth of knowledge within the group.” “And with Axar, his cool, calm, and collected approach to the game is evident. Hopefully, that rubs off on the rest of the team. Chases like tonight – where we dig deep and get over the line – will only strengthen us moving forward,” he added. KL Rahul is also expected to join the team soon after missing the first game against his old franchise due to personal reasons.