India and Mumbai Indians (MI) player Tilak Varma has opened up about a very personal battle he had. One of the most talented youngsters in world cricket today, Tilak was the hero for the Indian team, as his unbeaten fifty helped them win the Asia Cup 2025 recently.

Varma scored 69* as India lost three quick wickets in their chase of 146 runs, helping India win the final in Dubai by five wickets. He was named the Player of the Match for his brilliant knock.

Speaking to Gaurav Kapur on the Breakfast with Champions show, Tilak disclosed that he suffered from rhabdomyolysis, a rare and potentially dangerous condition caused by rapid muscle breakdown. He recalled being rushed to the hospital from the ground after his muscles stiffened so severely that his gloves had to be cut off during a competitive game.

He also expressed gratitude towards Akash Ambani, owner of the Mumbai Indians, and BCCI’s Jay Shah for their timely support.

"I haven't opened up about this to anyone. After my first IPL, I had some health problems. I wanted to be fit. These things have not come out. I was diagnosed with something called rhabdomyolysis, in which muscle breakdowns happen. I had in me that I wanted to be in the Test team and was playing domestic cricket; the A series camp was going on,” Tilak said on the show.

"Even on rest days, I was in the gym. I wanted to be the fittest player in the world and an excellent fielder, so I wasn't quite focusing on recovery. I was taking ice baths, but I was not giving my body the proper time to recover. I was pushing myself even on rest days. So, the muscle was overstrained, and it broke down. The nerves became quite hard.

Mumbai Indians were there with me, and I was playing the A series in Bangladesh. I pushed myself for a hundred, and my eyes started tearing up. My fingers weren't at all moving. Everything became so hard; it felt like a stone. I had to retire hurt; the gloves had to be cut off because fingers weren't moving.

Immediately, I got a call from Akash Ambani. He spoke to the BCCI, which helped me a lot. Thanks to Jay Shah, sir. I was immediately admitted to the hospital. The doctors told me that if I had delayed by even a few hours, the consequences could have been catastrophic. Even the IV line needle wasn't going in. The needle was breaking. My condition was very bad in the hospital. My mother was with me,” Tilak Varma explained the whole ordeal.

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Tilak spent months recovering from the condition and made his return in the IPL 2023 for MI and scored his highest IPL total, 84 not out from 46 balls against Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Thanks to his brilliant IPL 2023, Tilak made his India T20I and ODI debuts.

Fortunately, Tilak has remained free from health scares since. He has played four ODIs and 32 T20Is, becoming a mainstay for India in the shortest format of the game.