Mumbai Indians were knocked out of the 2023 Indian Premier League on Friday night after the side faced a crushing 61-run defeat to defending champions Gujarat Titans in the second qualifier. The Titans, invited to bat first by MI skipper Rohit Sharma, posted a mammoth score of 233/3 in 20 overs with Shubman Gill scoring an incredible century (129); MI were bowled out for 171 in reply.
MI faced significant setbacks early in the innings with Nehal Wadhera (4) and Rohit Sharma (8) being dismissed in quick succession. Ishan Kishan was forced to be substituted in the game as well, as he faced an injury after an unfortunate collision with fellow teammate Chris Jordan early in GT's innings.
Also read: Rohit Sharma's indirect WTC reference on Shubman Gill's insane knock vs MI leaves everyone in splits
MI's hopes, however, received a boost when Tilak Varma produced an exhibition in power-hitting, racing to 43 off 13 deliveries before he gave his wicket away to Rashid Khan. Even as Suryakumar Yadav (61) scored a quickfire half-century, it wasn't enough to steer MI past the finishing line.
Rohit Sharma's men may have failed to lift the title but Tilak's consistent performancs continue to remain a positive for the side. In the 2023 season, the left-handed youngster scored 343 runs in 11 matches at a stellar strike rate of 164.11. With no action in near future for the uncapped MI star, however, former India opener Virender Sehwag had an advice for Tilak. Referring to his own playing days, Sehwag suggested Tilak to "identify" his weaknesses and work on his skills.
{{/usCountry}}Rohit Sharma's men may have failed to lift the title but Tilak's consistent performancs continue to remain a positive for the side. In the 2023 season, the left-handed youngster scored 343 runs in 11 matches at a stellar strike rate of 164.11. With no action in near future for the uncapped MI star, however, former India opener Virender Sehwag had an advice for Tilak. Referring to his own playing days, Sehwag suggested Tilak to "identify" his weaknesses and work on his skills.
{{/usCountry}}“He should focus on 2 things; improve his fitness, and identify the skills that he can work on, as well as the mindset. It often happens when you play regular cricket, you change yourself with time. But when you're not playing cricket, you have to focus on your fitness and your skills. Like Suryakumar Yadav, he practiced a lot for his shots,” Sehwag told Cricbuzz.
“Tilak Varma should focus on improving his weakness. It reminds me of him, when I played for India for the first time in 1999, I was dismissed by Shoaib Akhtar. Before I could bring my bat down, the ball hit my pad. So, Dada (Sourav Ganguly) told me one thing... go back, practice against fast bowling, so you come better prepared. I used to play middle-order, I got spin, and by the time fast bowlers came, I had already scored a century. Likewise, Tilak Varma needs to look on where are his weaknesses,” Sehwag further said.
Tilak had been MI's top-scorer in the previous season -- also his maiden in the tournament -- when he scored 397 runs in 14 matches.