India batter Tilak Varma was run out in a bizarre manner in the 3rd T20I vs West Indies in Indore on Sunday. The batter had a brain fade moment when he and Axar Patel mistakenly thought that a shot towards deep backward square leg had reached the boundary, which led to the former getting run out.
This was after Axar had flicked a shot towards the leg-side boundary, with the West Indies fielder, Kamil Pooran, diving to stop the ball. Tilak thought the ball had crossed the rope and began walking away from his crease, while Axar initially shared the same impression. The ball, however, remained in play, and the West Indies fielders threw it back to complete the run-out at the bowler’s end as Axar returned safely to his crease.
Ahead of the 4th T20I in Hyderabad, Tilak opened up on what transpired in the middle.
“Both Axar and I felt the same way. We thought it was a boundary, which is why I was walking. Unfortunately, the ball was thrown to Axar’s end, and he was shown the ball. I did not see the ball. I thought it had gone for four, so I was walking. But these things happen in cricket,” he said in a pre-match press conference on Tuesday.
The fourth T20I will also be a special occasion for Tilak, who is set to play in front of his home crowd. He said he was looking forward to the experience, with several Sunrisers Hyderabad players, including Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan and Nitish Kumar Reddy, also part of the Indian squad.
“It is really a proud moment for me to play in front of Hyderabad crowd as vice-captain of the Indian team. It will be a special moment for me,” he said.
India are currently leading the 5-match series 2-1 after winning the first and 3rd games in Lucknow and Indore respectively. The Windies got one back when they won the second T20I in Ranchi.