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India vice-captain Tilak Varma feels the team can learn from the disastrous tour in T20 cricket of the island kingdom and emerge much stronger.

The T20 World Cup winners are currently on a losing streak after being whitewashed 2-0 by the Irish in Dublin in their first visit. The tourists then suffered a 4–0 loss in England, where they were outclassed by a rampant home team captained by Harry Brook. As a result, many fans were left questioning India’s strategy and preparation after a string of dismal performances, with the team’s batting failing to cope with the challenge of overseas conditions.

Tilak Varma Points to Overseas Conditions, But Admits Challenges Were Real

Speaking ahead of the three-match T20I series against Zimbabwe, Tilak Varma laid bare the reasons behind the Indian team’s struggles in the format in the Emerald Isle and across England.

“I think, you know, Shreyas bhai is doing a good job, so there will be certain responsibilities and expectations. At the same time, there will be different conditions as well. Like, if you look at the last two years, we have been playing most of our games in Asia. So, after two long years, coming to the different conditions, which is also good, but against a good team.
So, obviously, it will be difficult to bat in good conditions,” said Tilak Varma.

While Tilak Varma’s analysis of the team’s difficulties in England is spot on, the numbers tell a different story. Ahead of the 2026 T20 World Cup, the Men in Blue had toured South Africa and Australia for T20I series, while also hosting South Africa and New Zealand at home. However, it was the first time since 2022 that the team toured England for a T20I series, and the conditions were arguably much different than any other venue the team had faced in the past year.

Vice-Captaincy Brings New Responsibilities

Tilak Varma was forced to reassess his place in the innings after a lean series during the UK leg. However, the 23-year-old feels that his numbers do not represent his contributions to the team’s performance during the stint in the UK.

“I think traditionally I have been a big hitter, and I have batted at No. 3, so getting pushed down the order when the top order was falling did not help me at all. Because I did not have the chance to express myself freely. It’s a completely different situation when you come in at No. 5 or No. 6 after losing a few wickets in the powerplay. So, I was trying to be cautious at the start and accelerate the innings later, which probably didn’t help my game.

In this game, you have to bat in different positions and situations, and especially when the conditions are not in your favour, it will be even more challenging. At the same time, I always say that I do whatever it takes for the team, so if the team needs me to sit and wait for the right moment to accelerate the innings, then that’s what I will do. Of course, if the team needs me to hit right away, then that’s what I will do as well.

So, when you look at the situation in which I was batting in these conditions, from Ireland to England, we always lost four or five quick wickets in the powerplay, so it wouldn’t have made much sense to go out there and hit from the word go. And I think my instincts tell me to hit from the word go, but the situation in which I was batting did not allow me to do that.

The vice-captain acknowledged the responsibility that came with the newly assumed vice-captaincy position, suggesting that it may have affected his approach to the game.

“So that is the thing, that I always want to hit the first ball, but at the same time, I am a part of the setup now, and there are many responsibilities that come with the Indian team. When you have a vice-captaincy attached to your name, the team has given you that responsibility, so you need to take it upon yourself, and I think that is what I have tried to do,” he concluded.

Fresh Opportunity Against Zimbabwe

India have a fresh opportunity to overcome the frustration of the UK tour, as they take on Zimbabwe in a three-match T20I series starting on Sunday.

Though India will be starting their tour with a near-full-strength squad, Tilak Varma warned his teammates not to underestimate the Zimbabweans, as the hosts have been steadily rising up the rankings in the international scene.

“Zimbabwe is also a very good team. They are a very competitive team. And you see last year when we started the series, they won the first game. We expect them to come hard at us,” he said.
The vice-captain also feels that the experience of playing with seaming and swirling pitches in Ireland and England will stand them in good stead, as they expect similar conditions in Zimbabwe.

“As you can see, the wickets were good last time around. So I was talking to them because when we played in Zimbabwe last year, our junior team came in. So at that time, almost a lot of people from that team are still here.

“So I was talking to them (Vaibhav Sooryavanshi) about how the wicket will behave. At the same time, again, we have played two series, Ireland and England. So if you look at the ground, the dimensions are very big, and it’s windy, and the conditions are cool. It would be an advantage having played here.”

For Tilak Varma, and indeed the team, the series in Zimbabwe is not only a bilateral fixture but an opportunity to show the doubters and the naysayers that the painful lessons learned in the UK were not in vain.