Mumbai Indians (MI) skipper Rohit Sharma on Thursday (May 12) showered rich praise on his team’s young batter Tilak Varma, saying that the southpaw will soon play all three formats for India.
Rohit’s comments came after MI’s resounding five-wicket victory over Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the Wankhede Stadium, wherein Tilak top-scored for the five-time champions with an unbeaten 34 in a chase of 98 after a top-order collapse.
Chasing the paltry target, Mumbai Indians were struggling at 33/4 before Tilak and Hrithik Shokeen added 48 runs for the fifth wicket to put the team on the brink of victory. While Shokeen got out for 18, Tilak held the one end firmly to take MI over the line with 31 deliveries to spare.
"He (Tilak) has been brilliant, playing for the first year, having such a calm head is never easy. I feel he's going to be an all-format player for India pretty soon. He's got the technique and temperament. And there's hunger as well," Rohit said at the post-match presentation ceremony.
The MI captain admitted that there were some anxious moments in their dressing room during the chase.
"Looking at how the pitch was playing and to lose wickets upfront, there were tense moments in the middle. It was just about keeping calm and getting the job done. We were a little calm and got the job done in the end. We have played a lot of cricket here.
"We've had pitches like this. It's nice to get bowlers into the game as well at times. It's been batting-friendly all over, it was good to see bounce and swing from both sides which was good to watch," Rohit said.
Earlier, MI bowled out CSK for a meagre 97 in 16 overs after opting to bowl first. Daniel Sams starred with the ball, returning with the figures of 3 for 16 in his four overs.
Mumbai Indians will next face Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at the Wankhede Stadium on May 17.
(With India Today inputs)
