"Will go with Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav in my team": Former Indian team selector Sandeep Patil
Aug 18, 2023
New Delhi [India], August 19 : Former Indian team selector Sandeep Patil emphasized the inclusion of Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav in the national team for the Asia Cup and the World Cup.
Speaking to Star Sports, Sandeep Patil discussed the middle order in the batting line-up of India for the upcoming big events.
He said “100 per cent [if India should hand a debut to Tilak Varma?] I will go with Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav. Who will be in the playing XI, can be decided after looking at the balance and the opposition. But Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav will both be in my team.”
Tilak had a huge impact in the recent T20I series against West Indies. Tilak is already being considered for a spot in India's World Cup squad after finishing his first T20I series, having scored 173 runs in five matches with a strike rate of over 140 and showcasing immense maturity and composure.
While, Suryakumar had a relatively quiet series by his lofty standards with two half-centuries and a total of 166 runs in four innings, but the right-hander maintained his healthy lead at the top of the T20I rankings for batters.
Former India coach Ravi Shastri also spoke about how impressed he is with Tilak Varma, he said "I'm very impressed with Tilak Varma. Very, very impressed. And I want a left-hander. So, if I'm looking for a left-hander in the middle order, like Yuvraj Singh and before that was Suresh Raina at five, I would really look in that direction. Sandy and MSK have been selectors, and if I was a selector along with my panel, I would be looking at that current form, looking at how he's getting his runs.
So, when I look at the way he has got his runs over the last three months, whether it was for Mumbai Indians, for India, whether it was handling pressure, opposition, or different situations of the game, he has ticked all the boxes for someone so young. When it comes to shot selection, when it comes to the range of shots, the ability to be unorthodox, he has everything. So I'll be looking at him very closely because he is hot at the moment, his mindset, his confidence, he understands situations, which is for me the most important thing."
