Gujarat Titans (GT) skipper Hardik Pandya talked about the loss his side suffered against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Match 67 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 in Mumbai. He praised Glenn Maxwell for his brutal knock and said that the right-hander made them look like they were 10 runs short.
GT suffered a disappointing 8-wicket loss at the hands of RCB to end their league stage on a losing note. Batting first, after winning the toss, the Pandya-led side on account of the skipper’s unbeaten 62 runs and vital contributions from Wriddhiman Saha (31), David Miller (34) and Rashid Khan (19*) in the end posted a total of 168 runs on the board.
Defending the target, they had no answers to the onslaught by RCB openers Virat Kohli (73) and Faf du Plessis (44), who stitched 115 runs for the first wicket. Maxwell then blasted a brutal 18-ball 40* to help his side win the match with 8 balls to spare.
Read Also: WATCH- "I'm actually in the happiest phase of my life"- Virat Kohli
Speaking at the post-match presentation, Hardik Pandya admitted that it was a par score for them and they were happy with 168 runs.
Talking about the wicket, he said that they did well to pull things back in the middle but Maxwell made them look like they were 10 runs short.
"We had just a par score. The ball was stopping here and there and we were happy with 168. We wanted to give Lockie (Ferguson) the opportunity, but the wicket was holding a bit.
“So we wanted to go for bowlers who bowled slower ones and took pace off the ball. We pulled things back in the middle but the way Maxwell played in the end made us feel we were 10 runs short,” Hardik Pandya said.
Read Also: Virat Kohli open to take a break; wants to win Asia Cup and T20 World Cup for India
Pandya said that despite the loss, they are on the right track but need to address and learn a few things including losing back to back wickets.
He also revealed why Saha didn’t take the field in the second innings. He said the right-hander had a little ‘hamstring’ injury and was off the field as a precautionary measure.
"We are on the right track and we just need to look after losing back to back wickets. The learning is to make sure we don't do it in the playoffs. It is always good to score runs.
"I don't know about Saha's injury. He was feeling his hamstring and it was a precautionary measure to keep him off the field," he said
Despite their loss, GT retained their top spot on the points table. They will play Qualifier 1 in Kolkata on 24th May.
(India Today inputs)
