Chennai, Jan 25 After Tilak Varma carried India home in a nail-biting second T20I against England at the MA Chidambaram Stadium here on Saturday, captain Suryakumar Yadav said he was very happy with the way the left-handed batter went about his business and gave some learnings to the team.
In the chase of 166, India were quick off the blocks but were soon reduced to 78/5, thanks to the visitors’ bowlers taking scalps with absolute rockets. Tilak, who had a blazing start to his knock by then, switched his batting gear and handled the pressure well to get his first T20I fifty in India, which he didn’t celebrate.
He showcased his remarkable temperament by keeping calm and batting with the tail-enders for company, while farming the strike on certain occasions, and eventually completed the chase with four balls to spare, and remained unbeaten on 72 off 55 balls, laced with four boundaries and five sixes in a knock which will be remembered for ages.
Tilak was also helped by Ravi Bishnoi making nine not out and sharing a crucial stand of 20 to take India home. “Good to see we are playing an aggressive brand of cricket. At the same time, the guys put their hands up and stitched the small partnerships. Very happy with the way Tilak batted, something to learn for everyone. Good to see someone take responsibility.”
“Ravi Bishnoi putting the hard work in the nets, he wants to contribute with the bat. The boys have taken off a lot of pressure, and the atmosphere in the dressing room is light. There will be days it won't come off, but we know what we want to do. If we are on the same page, good things will take place," said Suryakumar in the post-match presentation ceremony.
He also said coming out as the winner of a nail-biting game was pure relief. "A little bit of relief. The way the game was going, we felt 160 was good, but the way they bowled, was good that the game went down to the wire. We have been playing with an extra batter for the last few series. That batter gives us two-three overs. The chat was to play like the last game.”
Jos Buttler, England’s captain, also credited Tilak for the way he batted and was pleased with how they made India work hard to complete the chase. "Great game. Really exciting end, credit to Tilak for getting them over the line. We created a lot of chances, really pushed them close.” Buttler also felt happy over England improving their batting performance by posting 165, as compared to the one put in Kolkata, where they were bowled out for 132. “Really pleased with the way we went about with the bat. There was the aggression we asked for, nearly a defendable score.”
“Jamie Smith on debut playing the way he did, Brydon Carse and the guys creating chances with the ball. We will improve on it all but happy with the style. They are going to play three spinners, so they are going to take wickets. If we take them for runs, I am happy."
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