Team India batter Tilak Varma has opened up about his future in red-ball cricket after making his County Championship debut for Hampshire. Varma stated that he has been eagerly waiting for an opportunity to prove himself in the longer format, despite being labeled a T20 specialist by the cricket community.
Tilak Varma is one of several Indian players, including Ruturaj Gaikwad and Ishan Kishan, to recently join the County Championship. Hampshire signed Tilak for four matches in the current season. Meanwhile, the Indian national team is also in England for a five-match Test series that began in Leeds on June 20.
Tilak Varma impressed on his County Championship debut, scoring an unbeaten 98 on Day 2 for Hampshire in challenging English conditions. The left-handed batter came to the crease after Essex pacer Samuel Cook dismissed Alistair Orr and Nick Gubbins in back-to-back deliveries.
Varma steadied the innings alongside opener Fletcha Middleton, who scored 61 before being dismissed by Simon Harmer. The pair added 52 runs for the third wicket. Varma then shared a 53-run stand with captain Ben Brown, who added 42 before falling to Matthew Critchley.
The southpaw took 126 balls to reach his fifty. He remained unbeaten on 98 off 234 balls, including 11 fours and three sixes. Varma added an unbroken 129-run stand with Liam Dawson, who scored 79, for the fifth wicket. Hampshire ended the day at 293/4, just three runs behind Essex’s first-innings total.
Always Say That Test Cricket Is My Favourite Game - Tilak Varma
Tilak Varma expressed a strong desire to build a reputation as a quality Test cricketer. He described Test cricket as his favorite format and revealed that he had long been waiting for an opportunity to prove himself in the longer version.
"I always say that Test cricket is my favourite game. I was waiting for this opportunity. Being a world no.3 batsman in T20Is, everybody thinks I am a good T20 batter," Varma told Hampshire County.
"But I know, and I have been saying this for a long time, I am a good Test player. I love playing Test cricket, playing close to the body, being challenged, especially in English conditions. It was cold weather today in the morning so the ball was moving a bit and turning," he added.
It Is Good for Us and the Team - Tilak Varma
The 22-year-old batter admitted that he focused on the present, adding that even after reaching a hundred, the job isn't done. He emphasized that extending the innings by another 100–150 runs would benefit the team greatly.
"When you are in 90s at the end of day's play, it goes in your mind. You are like 2 more runs, 5 more runs. I will be living in present. Even after 100, there is a long way to go. That's how I look at it. From here, if we keep going and get another 100-150 runs, it is good for us and the team," Varma said.
"Harmer was bowling ver well on this wicket. He was not giving any loose deliveries. It was challenging and I thought that it is a great opportunity to express. By god's grace, I have got runs today."
Also read: Ex-KKR Director calls Team India a Dog after another collapse in Leeds Test
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