Mandeep Singh, the batsman of Kings XI Punjab has opened up about the team’s biggest challenge, in the remainder of the Indian Premier League season, will be to overcome their bowling woes. Once again, in yet another Indian Premier League season, the Kings XI Punjab have found themselves at the bottom of the points table after four losses and one win.
The 2020 edition of the IPL is already three weeks down and Punjab’s position at this point is rather alarming. In their latest disappointment, KXIP were crushed by MS Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings, on Sunday, by 10 wickets with 14 balls remaining.
Mandeep Singh: Need To Win At Least 7 Out Of 9 To Have Hope To Make Playoffs
So far, the KXIP team have only won one game out of its five outings and lost four games, one of which was a Super Over against Delhi Capitals.
Punjab’s top-order batsman Mandeep Singh has admitted that the team needs to pull its socks up and perform their best in the remaining nine games, in which they to win seven games to make it to the playoffs safely. KXIP batsmen have fared better than bowlers apart from pacer Mohammad Shami.
Chris Jordan, Sheldon Cottrell and Ravi Bishnoi have been inconsistent. Sheldon Cottrell has picked six wickets but gave away 143 runs. Chris Jordan has gone wicketless in two matches while Ravi Bishnoi has picked up four scalps conceding 158 runs. Their team’s selection policy is also questioned for the omission of Chris Gayle and Mujeeb Ur Rahman and selection of James Neesham.
“Definitely, it is going to be tough from here, we need to win at least seven from our remaining nine matches, it will be challenging but I think our main issue is bowling, we have been struggling with the death bowling, we kind of went with Jordon in this game but Watson and Faf finished the game early, hopefully, we can address our bowling and we can put on a good show,” Mandeep said during the virtual post-match press conference.
“I feel we need to keep the fighting spirit going and we need to look at winning one game at a time,” he added.
The 28-year-old Mandeep Singh who hails from Jalandhar has only got one game so far which is the match against CSK in which KXIP got a 10 wicket thrashing. He only managed to score a 16-ball 27 on Sunday, October 4.
Mandeep Singh: Trying To Spend Time In Middle And Was Striking Ball Well
Meanwhile, KXIP skipper KL Rahul who became the orange cap holder by virtue of being highest run-scorer so far top-scored with a 52-ball 63. Mandeep Singh especially stressed on Kings XI Punjab’s poor bowling form and how it is crucial for the bowlers to step up in the forthcoming games.
“Honestly, I was trying to spend a bit of time in the middle, I was playing a match after eight-nine months, Rahul also told me to get my eye in and have few balls, I was looking to be positive, if the ball is in my arc, definitely I will hit it.
“Honestly, bit disappointing, I was striking the ball well, I would have loved to continue my innings, maybe that was the difference, maybe 10-12 runs, if me, Nicholas or Rahul would have stayed till the 20th over, the score could have been 190-200,” Mandeep added.
“I think our strength has been that we have been taking wickets upfront, but that did not happen in the match against CSK, both Watson and Faf took the game away from us, our strength in the last few games has been that we have been taking wickets in the first six overs but that did not happen against CSK,” he concluded.
Openers Shane Watson who scored 83* off 53 and Faf du Plessis who scored 87* off 53 had put up an unbeaten 181-run stand for Chennai Super Kings in their big win over Kings XI Punjab.