Tilak Varma credits Gambhir after unbeaten 51 steers India to win in Christchurch
India vice-captain Tilak Varma produced an unbeaten 51 off 26 to guide India to a four-wicket victory over New Zealand in Christchurch in the second T20I on Saturday, the batsman said. Tilak credited head coach Gautam Gambhir and batting coach Sitanshu Kotak for backing him before the match.
Tilak's 25-ball half-century and a late stand with Nitish Kumar Reddy helped India chase 181 with one ball to spare after the visitors had slumped to 70 for five. He was named Player of the Match following the victory that cut through a challenging middle phase of the chase. India recovered from early damage to complete the successful run chase.
Reflecting on the coaches' message, Tilak said he spoke to both Gambhir and Kotak before the game and kept their words in mind during the chase. "I was just thinking about batting till the end. Before today's game, I spoke to Gautam sir and Sitanshu Kotak sir. They told me that the whole of India believes in me and that if I batted till the end, I could win the game for the team. That was what was on my mind. I wanted to take the game as deep as possible and finish it. I'm really proud of myself for doing what they believed I could do," Tilak told Sony Sports.
Mitchell Santner disrupted India’s middle order, taking four wickets for 21 runs to place the visitors under pressure. Tilak said he urged team-mate Naman Dhir to remain at the crease and emphasised the importance of sharp running on a slower surface. "I was telling Naman that we could stay till the end. The wicket was slower compared to the last game, so I told him we would have to push hard with our running between the wickets, especially when the spinners were bowling. That was our plan, and we did that well," he said.
Naman Dhir made 31 off 17 before falling to Santner in the 15th over, a dismissal Tilak said probably delayed the finish. "Unfortunately, Naman got out in Mitchell Santner's last over. Otherwise, I think we could have finished the game in the 18th over. Credit goes to Naman as well for the way he batted. After that, the Hyderabadi boys, Nitish Reddy and I, were at the crease, and I'm really happy that we could finish the game," he added.
Tilak and Nitish Kumar Reddy combined for an unbroken 69 off 30 balls to complete the chase; Reddy remained unbeaten on 26 off 13. Tilak struck six fours and a six en route to his 25-ball half-century, while Reddy's late hitting sustained the pressure on New Zealand in the closing overs.
New Zealand’s total was built around a 116-run fourth-wicket stand between Glenn Phillips and Bevon Jacobs, with Phillips scoring 70 off 43 and Jacobs 58 off 46 to help the hosts reach 180 for five. Arshdeep Singh finished with two wickets for 33, and early strikes from Prince Yadav and Bhuvneshwar Kumar had reduced New Zealand to 41 for three.
The result left India 2-0 up in the five-match T20I series.
