Harare: Awarded man-of-the-match on his Twenty20 International (T20I) debut against Zimbabwe on Friday, India's left-arm spinner Axar Patel on Friday said he bowled to his strengths and was rewarded with a three-wicket haul.

India beat Zimbabwe by 54 runs in their first T20I of a two-match series at the Harare Sports Club here. Set a target of 179, Zimbabwe could muster only 124/7, undone by the slow bowling pair of Axar Patel (3-17) and veteran off-spinner Harbhajan Singh (2-29), who derailed the hosts after a promising start.