‘I was under a lot of pressure’- Tilak Varma reveals mindset in crunch moments in 2nd T20I vs England

At the 2nd T20I of the series against England at Chennai, Tilak Varma’s powerful batting enabled India win by a thrilling two wickets, giving them a 2-0 lead in the five-match series. The southpaw gave the hosts a thrilling victory from the jaws of England with his game-winning knock of 72* off 55 balls, which included four fours and five sixes.

As wickets dropped often, India’s top order failed to produce when chasing 166. The team was having trouble at one point, scoring 78/5, and the middle order was breaking down. But Tilak took charge and spearheaded the comeback. The young player shared his innermost feelings as the wickets fell all around him.

“I was really under a lot of strain. Arshdeep was stating, “I’ll strike it.” I’m going to hit it. I must provide a single. I reasoned that Archer couldn’t get you off this wicket. Since his ball was moving a lot, Adil Rashid will win this wicket. I was aware that Arshdeep would attempt to strike the spinner. “No, bhai,” I responded. Arshdeep should have played Archer if he wanted to. Tilak stated on Stars Sports Cricket Live, “I answered, ‘Okay, I will play,’ after he claimed he wouldn’t play Archer.

Tilak Varma also discussed the significance of managing the lower order pressure, bringing up his conversations with Arshdeep and Ravi Bishnoi, who were vital in the closing moments and were able to establish boundaries to cut down on the number of runs needed.

“I advised him to have his defense prepared. Just stop him, whether you have a bouncer or not. Bend over him if you see him from behind. Thus, I’m not sure what he did. “If I get a bouncer, I’ll hit him from above,” he declared. He said many things. I’m glad he got a boundary off Archer, though, regardless of what transpired. The batting of Ravi Bishnoi was the most impressive display. In nets, he has performed admirably. He went on to say that he and Varun Chakravarthy performed admirably when batting.

Those two fours were crucial. Tilak Varma

Tilak Varma planned the chase as Team India approached the finish line. As he batted with Bishnoi in the last overs, Tilak modified his strategy to avoid further pressure by choosing quick singles and rotating the strike.

“I was really confident that they could both play. “If you want to hit, you have to hit in the gaps,” I told them. No issues if you receive a single. Playing like Test cricket is necessary if you want to bend down on the bouncer. Thus, Ravi Bishnoi did a good job. As you can see, he flicked from the front. He deserves a great deal of credit as well. In actuality, those two fours were crucial,” Tilak said.

With barely six runs remaining in the last over, Tilak struck a clean drive past cover to guarantee India won by two wickets with four balls left. For his valiant efforts, he was later named Player of the Match.