Former India batter Mohammad Kaif was not happy with Punjab Kings’ (PBKS) decision to retire out Atharva Taide in an IPL 2023 match against Delhi Capitals (DC) on Wednesday (May 17), calling it an ‘extremely poor decision’.

Chasing 214 to win, PBKS needed 86 runs from the last five overs and it was then they decided to retire out Taide on 42-ball 55, bringing an end to a 78-run partnership with Liam Livingstone.

However, the move backfired as the likes of Jitesh Sharma (0), Shahrukh Khan (6) and Sam Curran (11) failed to make a mark with the bat.

While Livingstone returned with a whirlwind knock of 48-ball 94, it wasn’t enough to take Punjab over the line as they fell 15 runs short of the target.

“Extremely poor decision to ask him to come out. Why do you talk about Rinku Singh and Tewatia? Rinku Singh was a run-a-ball at the start and Tewatia was on 13 off 21 balls. They hit five sixes after that," Kaif said during the post-match discussion on Star Sports.

“Taide was scoring at a strike rate of 130 and was a set batter alongside Liam Livingstone. Livingstone was playing fast and Taide was performing his role. He is an uncapped player who was hitting fours and sixes," he added.

Kaif further pointed out that Punjab’s lower-order batters were dismissed quickly, adding that such moves rarely produce the desired results.

“He had gotten his eye in and you asked him to come out when it was the time to hit sixes. Very bad decision because who came after that - Jitesh Sharma, Shahrukh Khan and Sam Curran - all of them came and got out. If the decision had been good, I would have praised them,” Kaif stated.

“If you check the stats, whenever such a thing has been done that a set batter has been asked to come out, how many times has the new batter won the match? Show me the stats, I will concede defeat," he remarked.

With this loss, Punjab Kings' chances of reaching the playoffs took a big hit. They will need to win their last league match against Rajasthan Royals and hope for other results to go in their favour to qualify for the IPL 2023 playoffs.