3 batter at Mumbai Indians, New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner is highly impressed with left-hander’s growing stature as an accomplished finisher, a role he underlined with an unbeaten 51 that guided India to victory in the second T20I. Santner, who took 4 for 21 in the second game, has shared the Mumbai Indians dressing room with Tilak in the IPL. 3 before adapting to the demands of finishing games.
He’s very good,” Santner said after New Zealand’s defeat. Having watched Tilak Varma start as a No. He recalled how the batter initially operated at No. “When he (Tilak) first started, he was batting three. And it’s a slightly different role. So I guess the middle order role depends on how you operate in the middle and in the death phase. I’ve seen it for a couple of years now at Mumbai.
“If you look at the skills of both teams, it’s been very close and it’s come down to some small moments in the field. I think especially us, the back end of that chase tonight. I think we’re in a very good position, a couple of drop catches, missed fields. And it’s the winning or losing of the game.”
The skipper said the team would review its performance without dwelling too much on the missed chances. New Zealand are set to move to Wellington for the next match, where windy conditions could once again make fielding difficult. “Again, I think it’s the result. But again, we’ll reflect on tonight. There was a lot of good stuff again, as there was in the first game. And there’s some small stuff that I wouldn’t say let us down, but it can change games quickly.”
