Tilak Varma was earmarked as India’s long-term No. 3 after the team’s T20 World Cup triumph in 2024, but over the last two years, his role has steadily evolved. Team combinations and match situations have often pushed him into the middle and lower order, forcing him to adapt from anchoring an innings to finishing one.
The changing responsibilities have also been reflected in his strike rate, drawing criticism from some former cricketers and sections of the media whenever his scoring rate has fluctuated.
Ahead of India’s T20I series against Zimbabwe, the vice-captain said he pays little attention to criticism, saying his batting approach changes according to the match situation and the role assigned by the team.
“In this game, you have to bat in different places, and especially in such conditions, it’s not easy. At the same point, I always say that I do whatever is required for the team. If I have to stop and play for the team, then I stop and play. If I have to hit, then I hit and play,” Tilak said in a press conference on Tuesday.
“So at that time, in the conditions of the team, if you look at it, from Ireland to England, we lost 4-5 wickets in the powerplay. So going there and hitting and getting out doesn’t make sense.”
“So that’s what I always have in my mind, that I can go and hit the first ball. But at the same point, I’m playing for the country, so there are a lot of responsibilities. So what are the conditions of the team? If I have to play for the team till the end, then our team planning keeps changing.”
“So when you have a vice-captaincy in your name, then the team gives you something after thinking about it. So I want to take the same responsibilities that the management gives me, so I’m playing according to that,” he added.
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India head into the Zimbabwe series looking to return to winning ways after back-to-back disappointments, having lost 2-0 in Ireland before suffering a 4-0 defeat in England. Tilak said the focus was now on getting the basics right rather than dwelling on the results.
“Honestly, it has been a big learning since the last series. And we are just looking forward, and we just want to follow our basics and do well in the coming series. Obviously, if you see, everyone has played enough domestic cricket and the A-series just before this, so they are ready to play the series; it’s the same thing, but just a bigger stage.”
“So everyone knows that they have played enough matches in IPL, all the big formats. So they know how to execute on a bigger stage,” the left-hander added.
Despite the losses, Tilak insisted there was no sense of panic within the dressing room. Instead, he said the priority was to create a positive environment, back every individual and use the lessons from the Ireland and England tours to build momentum in Zimbabwe.
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“Honestly, if you see, Iyer bhai is leading a successful team right now. So, of course, there will be responsibilities and expectations. At the same point, there were different conditions in Ireland. If you look at the last two years, we played more matches in Asia. And after two years, we came straight to the overseas conditions, that too against a good side. England is a very good side. We all saw how they played in the semifinals.”
“So, of course, it will be challenging to play in good conditions on the good side. And there will be expectations. So in that, we have to stay calm at the moment, under pressure. And you should always create that positive energy in the team. So our mindset is that the results will come in the future.”
“But if we can create a good atmosphere in the dressing room, and each other can back each individual, then the atmosphere in the team will be good. It’s just a matter of one match or one series. If you’ve done well, again, you’ll create that momentum. So we thought that in this series, we had good learnings in the last series. So in this series, we will execute well and seal our best cricket well. We want to get that momentum back again,” he said.
