Tilak produced another clutch knock under pressure to win the second T20I against New Zealand.
Tilak Varma stole the show with bat in hand as India gained a 2-0 lead in the five-match series following a thrilling four-wicket win over New Zealand in the second T20I at Hagley Oval, Christchurch on Saturday (October 24).
Chasing 181 to win on a tricky pitch, the visitors were left reeling at 70/5 in the 11th over. However, Tilak anchored the innings with a brilliant, unbeaten 51 off 26 balls. The vice-captain partnered with Naman Dhir (31 off 17) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (26* off 13) to successfully secure the match for India with just one ball remaining.
After the game, New Zealand skipper Mitchell Santner explicitly highlighted how Tilak has evolved from a top-order batter into a top-tier finisher.
Having shared the Mumbai Indians dressing room with Tilak in the IPL, Santner noted that the left-hander originally functioned as a No. 3 batter before perfectly adapting to the intense demands of the middle order and death-phase execution.
"When he (Tilak) first started, he was batting three. And it's a slightly different role. So I guess the middle order role depends on how you operate in the middle and in the death phase. I've seen it for a couple of years now at Mumbai. He's very good," Santner said in the post-match presser.
Beyond Tilak, Santner commended his other MI colleague, Naman, for playing with complete freedom, as well as Nitish for his crucial composure at the backend of the chase.
"And same with Naman Dhir. I think the way he's come in and just looks so free from the start. Tilak took his time a little bit today, but managed the chase very well with Reddy at the end. If you can finish off games as a finisher, you're doing a pretty good job. So, I think it was a great knock from those last three, especially tonight," he added.
Santner, who triggered India’s batting collapse by taking four wickets, expressed frustration that dropped catches and fielding errors late in the run chase allowed the game to slip away from New Zealand.
"If you look at the skills of both teams, it's been very close and it's come down to some small moments in the field. I think especially us, the back end of that chase tonight. I think we're in a very good position, a couple of drop catches, missed fields. And it's the winning or losing of the game."
"From a skills perspective, we've been playing some very good cricket. It's just some small moments where, if you seize those moments, we could have easily been, I guess, 2-0 up as well," he remarked.
Santner said the team would assess its performance and look at the missed opportunities without ignoring the positives.
"Again, I think it's the result. But again, we'll reflect on tonight. There was a lot of good stuff again, as there was in the first game. And there's some small stuff that I wouldn't say let us down, but it can change games quickly," he concluded.