Tilak Varma, son of an electrician, earned his Mumbai Indians cap through hard work and perseverance to make his debut in the IPL 2022 against Delhi Capitals on Sunday.
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Tilak Varma was not confident of being picked up for a big sum by an IPL franchise in the mega auction after featuring in the 2022 U19 World Cup where India lost to Bangladesh in the final. The young-lefter had set his base price of INR 20 lakh and ended up fetching a deal of INR 1.70 crore from five-time champions Mumbai Indians. It was a dream come true for the 19-year-old who made his way to the IPL through hard work and perseverance.
“I was confident of playing IPL but never expected to get this price tag. It is a dream come true for me to play with a team I always loved. It will give me a perfect opportunity to learn and hone my skills, playing alongside the greats,” N Tilak Varma said in an interview with Press Trust of India.
And now he has the likes of Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma, pace-ace Jasprit Bumrah and star all-rounder Kieron Pollard to learn from in the dressing room.
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However, the journey for Tilak Varma, has not been easy as he belongs from a humble background where his father worked as an electrician and his family could hardly afford his cricketing expenses. But his coach Salam Bayash not only groomed him as a player but also helped him financially and now the dividends have paid off.
“It’s fine if you do not write about me but Salam sir should definitely get a mention. He bought me cricket gear and took care of my expenses. It’s all because of him and my family’s support that I reached this stage,” he stated.
Varma has already given a good account of himself during the Mumbai Indians debut as he hit some fine boundaries to score 22 runs off 15 deliveries against Delhi Capitals at the Brabourne Stadium on Sunday.
He has scored 381 runs in 15 T20s at a healthy strike-rate of 143.77, while mostly batting at the top-order, and will be expected to make the most of his debut IPL season.
