“We didn't expect 6, 6 to start his international career” - Robin Uthappa praises Tilak Varma over impressive T20I debut

Former India batter Robin Uthappa praised Tilak Varma after the latter made an impressive international debut in the first T20I against West Indies at the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba, Trinidad on Thursday. Uthappa described Varma as a very intelligent cricketer, who has a firm head on his shoulders.

India went down to West Indies by four runs in the opening T20I of the five-match series. Chasing 150, their batting floundered as they were held to 145/9. However, Varma made an impressive impact on debut. After taking a good running catch in the outfield to dismiss Johnson Charles, he top-scored in India’s chase with 39 off 22.

In rather stunning fashion, Varma slammed the second and third balls he faced, from Alzarri Joseph, for sixes, getting off the mark in international cricket in style.

Hailing the youngster, Uthappa told JioCinema:

"We didn't expect 6, 6 to start his international career. He made it look easy. I mean, these are some sublime shots, just the sound of the bat, certainly great shots and speak volumes about how confident he's feeling at the moment. And you know, I think he's got a very firm head on his shoulders. I think he's a very intelligent cricketer.”

The left-hander came into bat at No. 4 after the Indian openers were dismissed cheaply. Shubman Gill was stumped off Akeal Hosein for 3, while Ishan Kishan perished to Obed McCoy for 6. Suryakumar Yadav (21) and skipper Hardik Pandya (19) got starts, but could not carry on.

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“Wish he kicked on and got a 50” - Uthappa analyzes Varma’s innings

Sharing his views on Varma’s debut innings in international cricket, Uthappa stated that he was not surprised to see the fluency with which the southpaw batted. He, however, wanted the 20-year-old to carry on and score a fifty.

"That is where he likes to put pressure back on the opposition and we have spoken about this in the pre-match talk, where we spoke about how he likes to up the ante when he goes in the bat and that's exactly what he did from the word go. So I wasn't surprised with the way he kicked off, but I wish he kicked on and got a 50 in that first game,” Uthappa commented.

The second T20I of the India-West Indies series will be played at the Providence Stadium in Guyana on Sunday.