Former India cricketer and selector Sandeep Patil has thrown his weight behind rising star Tilak Varma, calling for the left-handed batter to be picked in the Men in Blue’s squad for the Asia Cup and the World Cup.
Patil also voiced support for Varma’s Mumbai Indians teammate and current India T20I vice-captain Suryakumar Yadav, saying he should also be picked despite his relatively poor numbers in the 50-over format.
“I will go with Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav. Who will be in the playing XI, can be decided after looking at the balance and the opposition. But Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav will both be in my team,” Patil was quoted as saying in an group discussion on Star Sports that also featured former India head coach Ravi Shastri and ex-chief selector MSK Prasad.
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Varma got his international career off to an excellent start after getting his maiden international cap in the T20I series against West Indies, smashing a 22-ball 39 on debut and following it up with scores of 51 and 49 not out in his next two outings.
Varma and SKY’s chances of making the Asia Cup and World Cup squads though, are subject to the fitness of KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer, who are currently undergoing rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy from a thigh and back injury respectively. Rahul and Iyer are expected to be given preference should they regain full fitness ahead of the two key events.
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Shastri too heaped praise on Varma and said he would want a left-handed batter in the Indian middle-order. The former India captain was also “very impressed” by the manner with which the 20-year-old had been scoring runs, both in the Indian Premier League (IPL) as well as in international cricket.
“I’m very impressed with Tilak Varma. Very, very impressed. And I want a left-hander. So, if I’m looking for a left-hander in the middle order, like Yuvraj Singh and before that was Suresh Raina at five, I would really look in that direction. Sandy and MSK have been selectors, and if I was a selector along with my panel, I would be looking at that current form, looking at how he’s getting his runs,” Shastri said on Star Sports.
“So, when I look at the way he has got his runs over the last three months, whether it was for Mumbai Indians, for India, whether it was handling pressure, opposition, or different situations of the game, he has ticked all the boxes for someone so young. When it comes to shot selection, when it comes to the range of shots, the ability to be unorthodox, he has everything.
“So I’ll be looking at him very closely because he is hot at the moment, his mindset, his confidence, he understands situations, which is for me the most important thing,” added Shastri.
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