Tilak Varma. (Photo Credits: X)
Tilak Varma underwent emergency surgery in Rajkot and is likely to miss the upcoming five-match T20I series against New Zealand. The left-handed batter experienced severe abdominal pain after breakfast on Wednesday morning. Tilak is a part of the Hyderabad squad for Vijay Hazare Trophy and has been named in the team for T20 World Cup 2026.
He is reported to be recovering well and could be discharged within a day if there are no complications but the participation in the T20 World Cup 2026 is being questioned.”Doctors have advised him to undergo surgery, which will take three to four week for him to recover. Chances of playing the entire T20I against New Zealand looks bleak,” a source in the BCCI was quoted as saying in the report.
The BCCI has not yet announced a replacement for Tilak Varma in the five-match T20I series against New Zealand, which starts on January 21 in Nagpur.
India’s Test and ODI skipper Shubman Gill can be a perfect replacement for Tilak Varma, purely because he can bat at number three. Gill is an experienced campaigner when it comes to bat in the top-order. Moreover, he can be one batter who can play the anchor’s role if required with the likes of Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya in the top and middle-order.
Shreyas Iyer can be another option in this list. Iyer is a good player of spin and with the World Cup happening in India and Sri Lanka, spin will play an important role. Moreover, he is already the vice-captain of the India’s ODI team and has experienced in leading IPL franchises successfully. So, Iyer can be a part of the leadership group as well.
While the opening slots don’t really have the vacancy with Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan already there. Abhishek will open the innings while Sanju is likely to open with him. Ishan is another option to open if and when required. Still, Jaiswal has played enough amount of T20 cricket opening the innings in IPL and domestic cricket. He is aggressive and will get into the groove quickly if given a chance.
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