"Gamble selection" - Twitterati caught in two minds after Tilak Varma is named in Team India's squad for the 2023 Asia Cup
Emerging batter Tilak Varma has received his maiden call-up to the Indian ODI squad after being named in the 2023 Asia Cup squad. The youngster made a huge statement in his maiden international venture in the shortest format during the recent tour of the West Indies.
The ODI call-up comes on the back of rallying cries of the team's middle-order woes as well as the need for a left-handed batter in the batting order to mix things up. Tilak was the Men in Blue's top-scorer during the five-match T20I series in the Caribbean, scoring 173 runs with a strike rate of 140.65.
The 20-year-old, who has played 25 List A matches, scoring 1236 runs at an average of 53.36, faces competition from the returning established middle-order batters, KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer. Also in contention is Tilak's franchise teammate Suryakumar Yadav.
The youngster is being fast-tracked keeping the ODI World Cup in mind and solid performances in the build-up could potentially warrant him a place in the final Team India squad.
Chief selector Ajit Agarkar confirmed the same during the press conference in Delhi and said:
Tilak Varma is promising - if he makes it into World cup then he will not be in the Asian Games - Asia Cup is a big opportunity for him".
There was a mixed reaction to the brave selection call with fans offering their diverse thoughts on the topic on social media.
Here are some of the reactions on Twitter:
Tilak Varma also emerges as a spin-bowling option in the squad
The left-handed batter rolled his arm over in his maiden series against West Indies and even claimed a wicket. Team India have been exploring the option of batters rolling their arm to contribute a few overs in white-ball cricket.
Tilak Varma does fit that profile and also has eight wickets in his List A career so far. With India only adding one genuine frontline spinner in Kuldeep Yadav, and KL Rahul carrying a niggle, making him unavailable for the first couple of matches, there is a good chance that Tilak might feature in the middle order and bowl a few overs as the third spinner after Kuldeep and Ravindra Jadeja.
Team India's full squad for the 2023 Asia Cup
Rohit Sharma (C), Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, and Prasidh Krishna.
Will the Asia Cup serve as a platform for Tilak Varma's spot in the World Cup squad? Let us know what you think.