IPL 2026: Tilak Varma’s return to form offers Mumbai Indians a way forward
Tilak Varma silenced critics with a stunning maiden IPL century, scoring 101 off 45 balls against Gujarat Titans. His composed yet aggressive innings, featuring seven sixes, propelled MI to 199/5. GT batting coach Matthew Hayden lauded Varma's ability to perform when others struggled, highlighting his crucial knock.
AHMEDABAD: Southpaw Tilak Varma had made 43 runs from 32 balls in five innings prior to his maiden IPL century on Monday at the Narendra Modi Stadium. The noise surrounding his batting form was getting heavier with every passing match. Answering all those questions, the 23-year-old reinforced his value to the team with a knock that was composed and aggressive in equal measure.
His 101 off 45 balls, studded with seven sixes and eight fours, took MI to 199/5, a total that proved too steep for the Gujarat Titans (GT), who lost by 99 runs. Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!
Coming in at the crease when Titans new-ball operator Kagiso Rabada was breathing fire and cranking up the speedometer with his thunderbolts, Tilak commenced his knock by nudging around for ones and twos and playing the odd dot ball, but crucially steadying the ship along with Naman Dhir to bring a semblance of calm to the Mumbai Indians innings. His innings was composed of two parts — the first 22 balls yielded only 19 runs, without a single hit to the fence. The rest of the innings was a blur of fours and sixes, an exhibition of unstoppable power hitting.
Tilak’s childhood coach, Salam Bayash reflected on the slight changes the batter has made to his game. “I told him to spend some time at the crease before going for shots and also to cut down on the reverse sweep and play straight. The pitch wasn’t that easy to bat on and the Titans’ attack was a good one.