India, Feb. 27 -- It wasn't a century, not even a half-century. But this 16-ball unbeaten 44 felt like something far more substantial: a reminder that Tilak Varma can flip roles without flinching.

Not long ago, in the Asia Cup final, Varma channeled his resilience into a gritty 69 off 53 balls that navigated a charged up Pakistan bowling attack on a tricky surface. Zimbabwe are not Pakistan, and the circumstances too couldn't have been more different on Thursday, but there's no denying Varma unleashed a side of him that India sought for a long time.

Before Thursday, his highest score in the T20 World Cup was 25, and his strike rate a lowly 118. Tilak's journey in international cricket is still in its early chapters. Expectations arrived...