Hardik Bhai’s message came first, Tilak Verma’s pain expressed over not getting a place in T20 World Cup

News India Live, Digital Desk: Indian cricket’s rising star Tilak Verma has broken his silence on not being selected (snub) in the T20 World Cup team last year. Tilak revealed that when the World Cup squad was announced and his name was not in it, he was quite disappointed. But the person who first consoled him in that difficult time was none other than his ‘mentor’ and Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya. Amidst the disappointment, Hardik’s ‘that’ magical message Tilak Verma told in an interview, “As soon as the team came and I came to know that I was out, I was a little sad. But then a message came on my phone from Hardik Bhai. He had written – ‘Don’t worry, your hard work will pay off. Will bring. Just focus on your process, your time will come. That message meant a lot to me because it came directly from the captain.” Tilak said that Hardik always guides him like an elder brother. “Winning and losing are part of the game” – Tilak’s mature style. Tilak showed a lot of maturity in his conversation. He said that as a player you always want to play the World Cup for the country, but the balance of the team is also important. According to Tilak, “Initially it felt bad, but then I thought that maybe I need to learn more. I used that time to work on my fitness and power-hitting.” IPL 2026 and new role in Mumbai IndiansTilak Verma is once again ready to take the field for Mumbai Indians under the captaincy of Hardik Pandya in IPL 2026. In the last few seasons, Tilak has emerged as the most reliable batsman for MI. Hardik Pandya has also said on many occasions that Tilak is the future of Indian cricket. In the upcoming season, Tilak is working hard to not only score runs in the middle order but also play the role of finisher.