Former India cricketer and chief selector Kris Srikkanth has blamed the Indian middle order and, particularly, vice-captain Tilak Varma for the defeat in the second T20I against Ireland on June 28 in Belfast.
India lost the second T20I to Ireland by 1 run and, in the process, suffered their first series loss and got whitewashed by Ireland in the process.
When Tilak came out to bat in the third over, the Men in Blue, chasing 155 to level the series, faltered to 19/3. The India T20I vice-captain was dismissed for a slow-paced 55 off 46 deliveries despite his best efforts to pace the run chase to perfection.
India fell one run shy of Ireland's total as the remaining batters found it difficult to maintain the necessary run rate.
"You can't play the way India did in the middle phase, especially Tilak Varma, Dube, and Axar. All their strike rates were poor. You have to stabilise a bit and then start attacking in the middle phase. Otherwise, you'll be finished if you fail in the middle phase. India lost the game in the middle phase. Tilak Varma was just playing for himself by sneaking in ones and twos. Axar Patel was the same.
Tilak Varma tried to take it till the end and become the hero. He thought of winning it in the end and celebrated by lifting his jersey. These targets have to be chased down with an over to spare and not go till the end,” Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel.
Tilak also played a similarly subpar innings in the opening T20I, scoring a 21-ball 19 in India's 34-run loss.
Srikkanth further criticised India's batting in the middle overs during their botched run chase in the second T20I on Sunday. Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, and Axar Patel struggled with timing, as the visitors went more than seven overs without a boundary.
"There was a stage when there were 45 balls without a boundary in the middle phase. How can you win a T20 match like that? It's shameful that mediocre Irish bowling has finished this Indian batting lineup. Even in the IPL, look at how many of these top Indian batters scored in Lucknow? Because in Lucknow, the wicket helped the swing and seam bowlers. Very few Indian batters scored in Lucknow. India needed to attack in the middle and not take it till the end," said Srikkanth.
After the series loss to Ireland, India will want to regain their confidence when they face England in the first T20I of the five-match series on July 1 in Chester-Le-Street.
