Tilak Varma, the new superstar of Indian cricket, gave full credit to his coach Salam Bayash, on his arrival back home from the Asia Cup success to a rousing reception at the Legala Cricket Academy on Monday.
Varma’s unbeaten 53-ball 69 against Pakistan in the final at Dubai was the outcome of his sheer temperament, for which he credited Bayash. “There were nerves as a lot was going on in my mind. We lost three early wickets. It was important for me not to get distracted by all the sledging [by the Pakistani players] as I had to keep the country’s interest in mind. I did not want to make silly mistakes. So, I remembered my coach [Bayash], who has always kept telling me, right from my childhood, to remain calm. I did that and let my bat do the talking. I said to myself that I won’t reply [to the sledging] till I win the match for India,” Varma told mid-day here on Tuesday.
The 22-year-old also expressed his gratitude to Prithvi Reddy, managing director of the Lelaga Cricket Academy. “Prithvi Reddy has always been supportive, right from my initial days as a cricketer. Whatever I am today is because of these two [Reddy and Bayash]. I have seen how Virat Kohli respects his coaches. I’m following in his footsteps by respecting my coaches,” added Varma.