Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], January 1 : Former Indian cricketer Robin Uthappa picked young women's batting sensation Pratika Rawal and hard-hitting number three Tilak Verma as Indian players to watch out for this year.
Uthappa was speaking on JioHotstar as Team India enters a new year, with three big trophies to win: the ICC T20 World Cup 2026, the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026, and the ICC U19 World Cup 2026.
Speaking on JioHotstar's 'Follow the Blues', on his players to watch out for, Uthappa said, "Pratika Rawal. She faced an injury during the WC and will come back into the play with a good form. Looking forward to her coming in and smashing a few records, doing exceptionally well. In men's cricket, Tilak Verma, my standout player, kuch gazab hi krega (will do something extraordinary)."
Since her debut last year, Pratika has played 24 ODIs, scoring 1,110 runs at an average of 50.45, with two centuries and seven fifties to her name already in 23 innings, scoring her runs at a strike rate of over 82. In her debut women's WC last year, she was amongst the run-getters with 308 runs in seven matches and six innings at an average of 51.33, with a century and a fifty before an injury caused her to miss the semifinal and final.
Tilak, while he has scored just 68 runs in four ODIs with a fifty, Tilak has been exceptional in T20Is, with 1,183 runs in 40 matches and 37 innings at an average of 49.29, with two centuries and six fifties, with his standout performances being two centuries against South Africa away from home in 2024-end and a calm, composed 69* while chasing 147 against Pakistan in the Asia Cup final.
Tilak finished the last year with 567 runs in 20 matches and 18 innings in T20Is, at an average of 47.25, with a strike rate of 129.15, including four fifties and best score of 73.