"Needs To Be More Positive Against Spin": Ex-India Star's Advice To Tilak Varma After Maiden IPL Ton
Tilak Varma's century against GT was a spectacular one, marking MI's joint-fastest IPL fifty, tying him with legendary southpaw Sanath Jayasuriya.
Following the Mumbai Indians' (MI) win over the Gujarat Titans (GT), former Indian cricketer Cheteshwar Pujara said that the franchise's star batter Tilak Varma will have to be "a bit more positive" against spin, using sweeps, reverse sweeps, and shots while dancing down the track to put pressure back on them. Tilak's century against GT was a spectacular one, marking MI's joint-fastest IPL fifty, tying him with legendary southpaw Sanath Jayasuriya. In his 45-ball 101*, Tilak endured a struggle-filled first half, scoring just 19 in 22 balls as his side found themselves in trouble at 44/3. He took off in the next 23 balls, scoring 82 runs with eight fours and seven sixes and a strike rate of 356.
Speaking on JioHotstar's 'Champions Waali Commentary', JioStar expert Pujara highlighted that Tilak needs to put pressure on the bowler and make him change his lengths by taking risks against him, pointing out that merely strike rotation keeps the spinner on top.
"Tilak needs to be a bit more positive against spinners. I am not saying he should just go for the big shots. When you play with intent and try to be positive, the spinner is forced to change his lengths. That puts pressure on him. Tilak can step out of the crease and can use the sweep or reverse sweep. He has many options, but first he must understand his own strength," he said.
"When I played, stepping out was my strength. If a bowler tried a short ball, I would play the cut or pull on the back foot. I feel Tilak should also step out and play his strokes. That will put the spinner under pressure. His sweep shot is also good, so that is another option. But the key is to keep the spinner under pressure. If you only try to rotate the strike in T20s, the spinner gets on top and doesn't need to change his length," he added.
Also, another JioStar expert and former cricketer, Aditya Tare, pointed out MI's ability to "fight", getting their second win of the season after four back-to-back defeats, recalling the five-time champions' history of making memorable comebacks.
"This win against the Gujarat Titans is very important for the Mumbai Indians. They had lost four of their first five matches this season and were at the bottom of the table. But Mumbai Indians have a history of making comebacks after poor starts. Take the example of the 2014 season, they lost their first five matches but still reached the playoffs. Then in 2015, they were in a similar position. They made an incredible comeback in the second half of the season and went on to win the trophy for the second time, beating Chennai Super Kings in the final. This team knows how to fight back. They will definitely take inspiration from those past seasons," he signed off.
Coming to the match, GT won the toss and elected to field first. Despite collapsing to 44/3 within the powerplay, MI found their footing in the game courtesy a half-century stand between Naman Dhir (45 in 32 balls, with six fours and a six) and Tilak Verma. Once struggling to go big and scoring at way below run-a-ball, Tilak exploded to score a 45-ball 101*, with eight fours and seven sixes, taking MI to 199/5 in 20 overs.
Pacer Kagiso Rabada (3/33) was the best bowler for GT, besides Mohammed Siraj (1/25), who continued his economical run in the competition.
During the chase, GT did not look like a threat at all and were skittled out for just 100 in 15.5 overs, with Ashwani (4/24) producing career-best figures with his left arm pace and spinners Allah Ghazanfar and Mitchell Santner putting GT under a tight squeeze with their two-wicket spells. Bumrah also fetched figures of 1/15 in three overs.
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Mumbai Indians
Gujarat Titans
Cheteshwar Pujara