'Mom and dad were literally crying' - Tilak Varma reveals his parents' reaction after India call-up

Tilak Varma has earned his maiden call-up to the Indian team following his stupendous performances in back-to-back IPLs. The southpaw has been added to the Indian squad for the five-match T20I series against West Indies, which begins August 3. 

Varma had another brilliant IPL 2023, where he scored 343 runs at an average of 42.88 and a strike rate of 164.11 in 11 matches. Following his selection in the Indian team, the youngster revealed that his parents were emotional as he made a video call to them.

“My mom and dad were literally crying yesterday. I made a video call to them and they were very emotional. My coach (Salam Bayash) also had the same reaction. He also became very emotional,” he was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.

Talking about his mindset batting in the death overs, Varma revealed that he got valuable advice from legendary all-rounder Kieron Pollard who advised him to remain calm and focus on the next ball.

“I will always back myself in any situation. I try to be clear in my mindset because Kieron Pollard was the main guy who used to do the job for us in that situation (death overs). He always tells me to be calm and just focus on the next ball. So, I just back myself each time I entered and the results worked,” he added.

Tilak Varma scored the third-highest runs by an uncapped player in debut season

The 20-year-old burst onto the scene during the IPL 2022 as he was the vital cog in Mumbai Indians’ batting throughout the season. Varma scored 397 runs at an average of 36 and strike rate of 131 and registered the third-highest number of runs by an uncapped player in debut season.

Only two uncapped players namely, Shreyas Iyer in 2015 and Devdutt Padikkal in 2020 have scored more runs in their debut IPL season than Varma. After impressing at the IPL, the Andhra Pradesh-born will be eager to leave his mark in his debut series and get his career off to a rollicking start.