India’s T20 vice-captain Tilak Varma said on Tuesday that early wicket losses in the UK and Ireland prevented middle-order batters like him from attacking from the start. He stressed that his style of play depends on the ground conditions and match situations.

Speaking before the first T20 against Zimbabwe on Thursday, Tilak addressed India’s winless streak in Ireland and England, their first tour after winning the T20 World Cup at home. Tilak had faced criticism over his strike rate and his struggle against slow bowlers despite scoring a fast 53 off 25 balls in the final T20 at Southampton.

How does Tilak Varma balance team demands with aggressive batting?

“In this game, you have to bat in different places, and especially in such conditions, it’s not easy. At the same point, I always say that I do whatever is required for the team. If I have to play the waiting game for the team, then I will play accordingly. If I have to hit, then I hit and play.

“So at that time, in the conditions of the team, if you look at it, from Ireland to England, you always had four or five wickets falling in the power play. So going there and hitting and getting out, it doesn’t make a lot of sense.”

Tilak said that while he wants to play aggressively right from the start, he sometimes has to be smart and play with caution depending on the situation.

What added responsibility comes with the vice-captaincy role for Tilak Varma?

“So that’s what I always have in my mind, that I can go and hit the first ball. But at the same point, I’m playing for the country, so there are a lot of responsibilities.

“When you have a vice-captaincy attached your name, team must have given me that after due deliberation. So I want to take the same responsibilities that the management gives me, so I’m playing according to that,” said Tilak.

Why did Team India struggle to adapt to overseas conditions?

Speaking more about the losses in the UK and Ireland, Tilak said the team struggled because they failed to adapt to the conditions, especially after playing most of their cricket in Asia over the last two years.

“Honestly, if you see, Shreyas bhai is leading a successful team right now. So, of course, there will be responsibilities and expectations. At the same point, there were different conditions in Ireland. If you look at the last two years, we played more matches in Asia.”

“And after two years, we came straight to the overseas conditions, that too good side. England is a very good side. We all saw how they played in the semifinals of the T20 World Cup. So, of course, it will be challenging to play in good conditions on the good side,” said Tilak.

(With PTI Inputs)

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