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Cricket PlayersAshwin, four former India cricketers, ex-chief selector want Rohit, Dravid to pick Tilak Varma in Asia Cup, World Cup
Noted current and former India cricketers have started to talk about Tilak Varma's inclusion in India's squad for Asia Cup and World Cup.
Tilak Varma has taken international cricket by storm. So much so that a top current India cricketer, at least three former players and a chief selector have strongly started to talk about the possibility of his inclusion in India's World Cup squad. With less than two months to go for the ODI World Cup starting on October 5, it is unlikely that the selection committee led by Ajit Agarkar will many any drastic changes to their plans but Tilak, for sure, has given them plenty to think about with impactful performances in all three of the T20I that he has played against the West Indies. His score were 39, 50 and 49 not out.
If Tilak has to play the World Cup then he has to be in contention for the Asia Cup starting August 30. There is still reasonable doubt over Shreyas Iyer availability for the multi-nation tournament and there lies the opening for someone like Tilak. Sanju Samson and Suryakumar Yadav are definitely ahead of the left-hander in the pecking order but the likes of Ravichandran Ashwin, MSK Prasad believe it might not be bad idea to make a bold call.
"This is neck-and-neck with respect to the World Cup. So, will they think about Tilak Varma as an option if we don't have enough backups? Because Sanju Samson has performed really well in ODIs," Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
"But the exciting part about Tilak Varma is that he is a left-hander and Team India is lacking left-handers. Jaddu (Ravindra Jadeja) is the only left-handed batter in the top 7."
Ashwin gave his rationale behind picking Varma as he feels the top cricket-playing nations won't have quality finger spinners who can trouble a rookie.
"And look at the spinners from all the top teams. Australia have Ashton Agar. England have Moeen Ali and a leggie in Adil Rashid. So, most teams don't have a finger spinner to challenge the left-handed batters. That is why the emergence of Tilak is crucial."
Ashwin knows that it could be difficult to fast-track Varma but there is no harm in giving him a chance, especially after his ongoing exploits in the Caribbean.
"It is still early but will they see him as an option? He has at least made everyone notice him. He is surely in the contingency plan. Because any selector who would have seen that knock would have gone, 'Woah!'" he said.
MSK Prasad echoes Ashwin, says Tilak Varma a good option
Prasad, who was the head of the selection panel during the last ODI World Cup, feels that someone like Varma is an equally capable ODI player.
"Look at his List A record for Hyderabad. He has played 25 List A games and has an average of 55 plus (56.18). Five hundreds and five half-centuries. It means at least 50 per cent times he is converting fifties into hundreds. A strike rate of 100 plus," Prasad told PTI.
"I think it won't be a bad idea provided Shreyas (Iyer) can't make it. Only then you can think of Varma. But I am sure he will be a white ball regular for India across formats going forward," the former India stumper added.
Wasim Jaffer has his say on Tilak Varma
Former India Test opener Jaffer, who has seen Varma's exploits for Mumbai Indians while sitting in the Punjab Kings dug-out, has never seen any young batter look "so assured in his first three innings."
Talking to ESPNCricinfo, Jaffer admitted that definitely, time is of essence since only nine games are left before the World Cup starts.
"Ideally, you would want a player to get 15 to 20 games. We expected Shreyas and KL to be ready for Asia Cup but we are reading they won't be ready for Asia Cup and we don't know if they would be available for Australia ODIs as we don't know how serious are those injuries.
"If you want to try a guy, why not Tilak Varma? No matter who plays, he would be under-cooked, so why not Tilak Varma? I would take a bet on him," Jaffer said.
Ojha, Chopra, RP Singh bowled over by Tilak Varma
Former India spinner Pragyan Ojha, former opener Aakash Chopra and former pacer RP Singh also batted for Tilak's inclusion.
"Is there a possibility of expediting #TilakVarma's inclusion to help settle the number 4 debate for #TeamIndia in ODIs? He appears promising, displays strong composure, and adds the advantage of being a left-handed batsman," tweeted Ojha.
“Generally, we tend to forget people who are not there. This has been a continuous debate happening around the No. 4 position. We even talked about it during the ODI series. We saw three different batters at that position, Axar Patel was also tried at that position, even though he wasn’t a candidate for that position. At that time, we were still discussing Shreyas Iyer or KL Rahul, right? When they are back, I think Tilak must wait. But at this point in time, if we don’t see them, then why not, Tilak can be tried," said Aakash Chopra on Jio Cinema.
RP Singh concurred with Chopra and Ojha. “He has successfully ticked all the boxes, and the most impressive aspect of his batting lies in his fearless approach right from the first ball. He doesn't merely swing for the sake of swinging; instead, he evaluates where to place the ball. His profound understanding of the game, including its pace and rhythm, enables him to take calculated risks. I feel he is prepared, with his performances in the domestic circuit and IPL, all of that is in his head that he has played such good innings but when you play a match at the international level you need to prepare well knowing which bowlers are there and to which bowler will you be hitting those big shots.”
