India began their five-match T20I series against the West Indies with a surprising loss in Trinidad and Tobago. Despite limiting the hosts to a total of 149/6, India fell just four runs shy of the target, resulting in the West Indies taking a 1-0 lead in the series. However, Captain Hardik Pandya highlighted some positive aspects of the match, particularly praising the performance of debutant Tilak Varma.
“Tilak – very pleasing to see the way he started his innings. Not a bad way to start your international cricket with a couple of sixes. You can see the confidence and the fearlessness they have. Going forward, they are going to do wonders for India,” Pandya said during the post-match presentation.
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Tilak Varma began his batting with great confidence, smashing two sixes in a row on just his second and third deliveries. Unfortunately, he was eventually dismissed by fast bowler Romario Shepherd after contributing 39 runs from 22 balls to India’s total.
Besides his batting prowess, Tilak played a crucial role in the field. He took an incredible catch to dismiss the dangerous Johson Charles, off the bowling of spinner Kuldeep Yadav. Additionally, he made a significant impact by sending back Nicholas Pooran, who had scored 41 runs off 34 balls, off the bowling of Pandya.
Pandya also praised the team’s bowling effort, acknowledging their positive performance. However, he also pointed out that the match turned against India during the middle overs when they lost wickets in quick succession. At a crucial stage, India required just 37 runs to win in the last five overs, and with Pandya and Sanju Samson at the crease, they had a good chance.
But former West Indies captain Jason Holder played a decisive role in shifting the momentum in his team’s favor. In the 16th over, Holder made an immediate impact by dismissing Pandya with his very first ball, and then Samson was run out on the third ball, thanks to Kyle Mayers’ sharp fielding skills. Holder’s over turned out to be a maiden, and India couldn’t recover from the setbacks they faced during that crucial phase of the game.
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