Tilak's No.3 experiment stalls as India survive scare to win Christchurch thriller
India took a 1-0 lead in the five-match T20I series in Christchurch. They chased down 226 with two balls left, but the middle-overs wobble, and one batting-order call in particular, will be the talking point.
Shreyas Iyer won the toss and chose to bowl. That looked doubtful for long stretches, because New Zealand finished on 225 for 4. Glenn Phillips struck an unbeaten 82 off 40 balls. Finn Allen added 45 off 24 at the top, and Axar Patel finally removed him. Bevon Jacobs hit 31 off 16 and put on 73 for the fourth wicket with Phillips. He cleared the rope off the first ball he faced, a straight six off Arshdeep Singh. Phillips closed the innings with a reverse-sweep boundary off Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
The chase began in explosive fashion. Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma put on 93 for the first wicket in only 35 balls. One over in the powerplay went for 26, and the ball was also swinging more than the hosts could manage. Samson reached fifty in 23 balls and finished with 67 off 33, with eight fours and four sixes. He was named Player of the Match.
Then the innings lost its way. India were 93 without loss at one point, and soon slid to 122 for 4. Spinners Michael Bracewell and Mitchell Santner took two wickets each in that spell, and India lost four wickets for 29 runs in 22 balls. The collapse turned a comfortable chase into a tense one.
**The Tilak question**
The batting order is where the debate started. Tilak Varma walked in at No.3, ahead of Ishan Kishan, and it did not work. He made 6 off 11 balls. He had a nervy moment when a reverse sweep top-edged onto his helmet and he went through a concussion check, which cleared him to continue. He then tried to hit Bracewell over the leg side without getting to the pitch of the ball, and he was caught at deep mid-wicket by Lockie Ferguson. Kishan followed soon after. He made 1 off 3 balls, miscuing a slog-sweep off Santner, and Allen took a good running catch at long-on.
The issue is not new. Tilak has often needed time to get going against spin in the middle overs, and that showed again. His slow start also pushed up the required rate at a time when India needed to keep their foot down. Those who preferred the original line-up, with Kishan at three, will say India disturbed a top order that was already working. Defenders of the move will say a flexible order is part of the team's stated approach, and that the win shows the squad has enough depth to absorb a failed experiment.
**Iyer and Dhir finish the job**
India were rescued by their captain and a late burst. Iyer made 42 off 28 balls, including two sixes off Matt Henry in a 20-run over, before he fell to Adam Milne. Axar chipped in with 24. Naman Dhir then finished unbeaten on 42 and took India to 230 for 6 in 19.4 overs.
It was also a historic chase. India's 230 is the highest successful chase at Hagley Oval, and it came on a dewy night when the pitch seemed to get flatter in the second innings.
**What it means for India**
The result matters more than the process for now. India arrived in New Zealand days after a high-scoring home series and in very different conditions, and they still won a 450-plus-run contest. The bowling is a concern, though. Allowing 225 even with a new ball that swung suggests the attack will need to tighten up against the New Zealand power-hitters. The management also has some thinking to do on the batting order. If Tilak is going to bat at No.3, he will need to start better against spin. If he isn't, the team will have to settle on who bats where in the middle order.
The second T20I is the next test of both questions.