IND v ENG 2025: “Arshdeep Singh was saying 'I will hit it'”- Tilak Varma reveals chat in thrilling chase in 2nd T20I

Tilak Varma got the Player of the Match for his 72*, helping India win 2nd T20I by 2 wickets.

Tilak Varma | BCCI

Tilak Varma’s amazing knock in the second T20I between India and England in Chennai gave the hosts a 2-wicket win in a thrilling chase. Thanks to this win, India now leads the five-T20I series 2-0 with the third match to be played in Rajkot on January 28.

Tilak remained unbeaten with 72 off 55 balls, including four boundaries and five sixes. He brilliantly used the English bowlers' tremendous velocity to build runs and single-handedly lead India to victory.

With six runs needed off the last six deliveries with tailender Ravi Bishnoi at the other end, Tilak kept his cool. He clipped Jamie Overton to backward square leg for two runs before hitting a precise boundary through the deep extra-cover region to secure India's victory.

In the post-match press conference, Tilak Varma revealed his conversation with Arshdeep Singh during the tense chase and admitted feeling significant pressure in the middle.

"Actually, I was under a lot of pressure. Arshdeep was saying, 'I will hit it. I will hit it. I have to give a single.' So, I thought, on this wicket, Archer can't get you out. On this wicket, Adil Rashid will because his ball was moving a lot. I knew that Arshdeep would try to hit the spinner. I said, 'No, bhai.' If Arshdeep wanted to play, he should play Archer. He said he wouldn't play Archer, so I said, 'Okay, I will play.' I told him to be ready with his defense. 'Whether you get a bouncer or not, you just have to stop him. If you see him behind, bend down.' So, I don't know what he did. He said, 'If I get a bouncer, I will hit him from above'," Tilak told Star Sports.

"He said a lot of things. But whatever happened, I am happy that he got a boundary off Archer. And the best thing to see was Ravi Bishnoi's batting. He has done a very good job in nets. He and Varun Chakravarthy did a very good job in batting. I had a lot of faith in both of them that they could play," he said.

Ravi Bishnoi hit two brilliant shots for four, especially one against Liam Livingstone to bring down the equation to 6 runs in the last over.

"I told them, 'If you want to hit, you have to hit in the gaps. If you get a single, there is no problem. If you want to bend down on the bouncer, you have to play like Test cricket.' So, actually, Ravi Bishnoi played well. If you see, he hit a flick from the front. A lot of credit goes to him too. Actually, those two fours were very important," Tilak said.

The third T20I is scheduled for Tuesday at the Niranjan Shah Stadium in Rajkot, where India will look to clinch the series.

 
 

By Jatin Sharma - 26 Jan, 2025

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