"Will Be Caught...": Ex-Pakistan Star On Why Tilak Varma Might Fail In Big Events Like Asia Cup, World Cup

Rising India star Tilak Varma has made a strong case for himself with impressive batting performance in the recently-concluded five-match T20I series against West Indies. The southpaw scored 173 runs across five matches against the Caribbean team on his international debut. His performance included the scores of 51 and 49 not out. Be it the technique, patience or maturity, Varma certainly ticked all the boxes to prove that he is a talent for the future of Indian cricket. Many experts even started predicting him to take over India's number 4 spot in ODIs in the absence of recovering batter Shreyas Iyer.

However, Pakistan's former batter Basit Ali feels that varma will struggle during the upcoming Asia Cup.

"How will Tilak Varma perform in Asia Cup? Keep your fingers crossed because there is a difference between T20I and ODI matches, and in the bowling of West Indies and other teams. The way he uses bottom hand to grip the bat, he will be caught. He is a top-order player, plays at number 3. But India have Virat Kohli at that position. Will Kohli play at number 4? Let's see what will happen," said Basit on his YouTube channel.

While a lot of trust has been shown on Varma's abilities by the team management and the former cricketers, it remains to be seen how the batter fares in the ODI format of the game.

Varma is likely to be selected for the upcoming Asia Cup that will be played in the 50-over format. If he manages to make a cut into India's squad, it will be interesting to see how he performs in the format.