Hyderabad cricketers Tilak and Nitish share the secret behind India’s win

India secured a hard-fought win over New Zealand in Christchurch as Hyderabad-born teammates Tilak Varma and Nitish Kumar Reddy shared their reflections on the victory. Their unbeaten 69-run stand, supported by Naman Dhir’s quickfire 31, helped India chase 181 successfully

Christchurch: Hyderabad cricketers Tilak Varma and Nitish Kumar Reddy reflected on India’s impressive win against New Zealand at Hagley Oval in Christchurch, praising each other’s performances after the victory.

The two Hyderabad players were recently at the centre of India’s heartbreaking defeat to the West Indies in Hyderabad, where they failed to pull off a miraculous win while chasing a target of 248. However, they helped India bounce back with a stellar win against New Zealand in challenging conditions on Saturday.

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Tilak scored an unbeaten 51 off 26 balls, while Nitish remained unbeaten on 26 off 13 deliveries after Naman Dhir provided hope with his 31 off 17 balls during the chase.

Tilak and Nitish referred to the loss against the West Indies in Hyderabad but felt that “God always has the right time” for things to happen. Their unbeaten 69-run partnership in Christchurch helped the Men in Blue chase down a target of 181 for an unlikely win.

“Guys, I have the player of the match today,” Nitish began the interaction after the win in a video shared by the BCCI. Tilak was quick to reply, “I have the game changer of the match today.”

The two reflected on their partnership, which proved decisive. “Tilak, tell me, how did you feel about our partnership in the middle? For me, it felt absolutely amazing,” Nitish asked.

“I also felt very good about it. Back in Hyderabad, both of us basically thought that if we could win the match that day, it would mean a lot to have two Telugu guys out in the middle. But, as I always say, God always has the right time for us. We have to keep following the process and keep working hard, and the right things will come at the right time,” Tilak said.

The second T20I was played on the same surface as the first, and the wear and tear were clearly visible, with the ball gripping and making stroke play challenging. Moreover, the ground’s large dimensions made hitting sixes difficult.

“More than that, with difficult conditions and a big ground, I think the wicket was really challenging today. Especially if you see, it was a big ground, the slower side was challenging, and when they were bowling bouncers, the ball was coming through quickly. So, it’s not easy to hit sixes whenever you want.

“Honestly, if you see the first game, it was easy to hit sixes. But in this game, as everyone knows, it was pretty challenging. When a challenge comes, you know how we want to play smartly. That’s how we played today. We wanted to show our fitness levels and put our core work into the game by running those twos, taking singles and running hard. Whenever we wanted, we hit sixes,” Tilak added.

The two players kept the scoreboard ticking with quick runs and found boundaries at crucial stages to seal the game on the second-last ball, with four wickets in hand.

While the duo helped India cross the line, all-rounder Naman also played a key role in restoring hope with his stroke-filled 31. India were 70/5 after 10.5 overs, but Naman provided the much-needed impetus before Tilak and Nitish finished the job.

“I really enjoyed playing with him. I know he’s a quick runner, and I’m a quick runner too. We really enjoyed playing together. But one thing I wanted to appreciate about Tilak was that when Naman Dhir was going pretty well and striking tremendously, Tilak came in and did not take any risks. He just gave singles to Naman, who could then do his thing,” Nitish said.

“One thing: when Naman was batting, I also wanted to go for the big shots, but I had promised Gautam sir and Kotak sir that I would take the game deep from next time onwards. In the last game (the first T20I), my mindset was slightly defensive; I wanted to take the initial singles and take the game deep. But today, when I was at the crease, I wanted to hit boundaries off spinners. However, I played sensibly when Naman was hitting. I thought I would calm myself down and take the game deep. After that, it was God’s plan,” Tilak added.