IPL 2018: We were 15-20 runs short against KKR – Ajinkya Rahane
Apr 20, 2018 at 12:10 PM
Rajasthan Royals (RR) skipper Ajinkya Rahane believes they were 15-20 runs short against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) after succumbing to a seven-wicket defeat at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium on Wednesday.
Batting first, the Royals managed to post a modest 160 for 8 before Kolkata cruised to victory with seven balls to spare.
KKR spinners were absolutely of top notch before their batsmen chased down an easy target.
We were 15-20 runs short
Talking at the post-match press conference, Rahane noted that they were few runs short. He also backed his bowlers admitting that they have been bowling really well.
“We were 15-20 runs short but it (the loss) is nothing to do with our bowling. Our bowlers have been bowling really well. In T20s it happens, even if they bowl well sometimes they will go for runs. I will back my bowlers,” Rahane said.
Rajasthan witnessed a middle-order collapse before Rahane (36) and D’Arcy Short (44) provided them with a good start. Also, many players got out to deliveries which kept low as the wicket was slowing down.
“It was a different wicket from the first game. Against Delhi Daredevils (on April 11) the wicket had good bounce but it was hard to get elevation on tonight’s wicket. The ball was slow and keeping low,” he added.
“But no excuses, we are professional cricketers, we know how to bat in these conditions. It was my responsibility to take that innings forward because I was batting really well. If I would have batted till the 15th over then it would have been different,” Rahane added.
Meanwhile, Rajasthan got off to a slow start as they scored only nine in the first three overs. Since then they started to accelerate, however, it was their middle-order which failed to come good.
“When me and D’Arcy were batting, we thought we will target 45-50 in the first six overs and we got there. We were 48/0 despite being 9/0 after three overs. It is all about believing in your ability, in your partner and our discussion was to just back our game and get 50 runs in first six overs and if we are there then we just carry on,” he concluded.
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