RP Singh believes that Tilak Verma’s impressive performance in the ongoing T20s series between India and West Indies has put him in the running for a place in other formats as well. West Indies set the men in blue a target of 160 runs in the 3rd T20 match in Guyana on Tuesday, August 8, 2023. Suryakumar Yadav made 83 runs in 44 balls and Tilak Verma made 49 runs in 37 balls not out helping the visitors register a comfortable seven wickets win with 13 balls remaining.
During a discussion on JioCinema, Singh was asked whether Tilak Varma has shown the necessary maturity in his batting to consider his name for the other formats, to which he replied:
“He has put in his slip and everyone should read it as well. No. 4, left-handed batter – he ticks all the boxes. When he was selected for the T20 format, his List A career was checked. He was a proper List A player before the IPL.”
The former Indian pacer pointed out that the Hydrabadi youngster usually plays a conventional shot and has tweaked his game to meet the demands of the shortest format. They said:
“He used to build his innings and win matches for his team. He values his wicket. You wouldn’t see him playing too many shots while stepping out. He chooses shots that are close to being technically correct. He has changed his game slightly in the T20 format.”
Verma’s record on List A cricket is exceptional. The 20-year-old has scored 1236 runs in 25 innings at an excellent average of 56.18 and an impressive strike rate of 101.64.
“Definitely He Has A Fearless Approach But He Also Sees Where To Hit The Ball” – RP Singh On Tilak Verma
RP Singh highlighted that Tilak Varma chooses his shots judiciously. He explained:
“The good thing about his batting is that he drives the first ball if it is there for the drive, he has a fearless approach for sure, but he also sees where to hit the ball. It is not that you go and hit sixes. He played a drive and then made room to hit a four with an upper cut.”
The cricketer-turned-commentator concluded by observing that the Mumbai Indians batsmen play according to the merit of the delivery and take calculated risks. They said:
“He understands the game very well. He is seeing the length of the deliveries and figuring out where to play them. He plays risky shots but they are calculated. So he is also judging the game well.”
Tilak Verma hit four fours and a six during his unbeaten 49-run knock. Although he was slightly unlucky to miss out on a second successive half-century, he became the first Indian player to score more than 30 runs in each of his first three T20I innings.
