MI approach surprises Yuvi

“Twenty20 is unpredictable; it can go anywhere, anytime. It was a bit surprising. They could have finished the game early, but we bowled and fielded well. We didn’t bat well but still made a match out of it,” said Yuvraj after his side suffered a seven-wicket loss.

Yuvraj did not blame the wicket for his side’s poor batting display. “The wicket was good for batting. It was a normal wicket. We bowled well. But to defend 120, we needed to get early wickets. It did not happen. With Rohit Sharma and (Andrew) Symonds, you needed a bigger total. They bowled well and deserved to win,” he said.

He felt a run-out attempt in the last over which could have sent back Symonds could have provided his team a slim chance to win but it did not happen. “Had we got the run out, it would have been interesting,” he said.

Yuvraj praised Robin Uthappa for his knock of 45 in 27 balls. “He played well and played smartly. He needed a bit of support. The more games he plays, the better he will get.”

Yuvraj was not too concerned about his side’s back-to-back defeats, saying in Twenty20, it needed only one win to shift the momentum. “We won two games and have lost two games. If we win the next two games, we will again be on top. The last game (versus Delhi Daredevils) we played well. This is the only game we did not play to potential,” he said.

The Pune captain said chasing looks a bit easier as compared to setting a target. “It is difficult to set a target. While chasing, you can set the tempo,” he said, adding, “I thought the wicket was drier and it would have been good to bat as it was sunny. But we lost too many early wickets.”

Yuvraj said South African Graeme Smith had a hamstring injury but would remain with the side. Smith suffered the injury during an on-field collision with team-mate Rahul Sharma on April 13. “He has a hamstring injury. He will stay with the side (as of now),” Yuvraj said.