JOIN USOur game against Kings XI just proves that in this format, there can be no favourites. It’s about that particular day and those few hours. Kings XI had nothing at stake but the loss has really hurt us as a unit. None of us expected to lose the match, not even in our wildest dreams, after putting up 200 on the board. Sunday’s result has taken away the breathing space and from now on, it will be no less than a knockout phase for us.
Our bowlers have been our strength. In fact, we have been working hard to click as a batting unit, while the bowlers have been working in tandem, restricting opponents around the 170-mark. Everybody is bound to have a bad day and that’s exactly what happened with our bowling unit against the Kings. Only Shane Bond stood out to some extent, otherwise everyone struggled to find his rhythm.
Mahela’s innings was one of its kind. Whatever he hit stayed hit. In fact, Mahela’s effort eclipsed Chris Gayle’s explosion with the bat early in the match. There has been much talk about the West Indian skipper not living up to expectations, but I could sense that a big one was just round the corner for him. We had a good start to our innings and in the middle phase Gayle accelerated the scoring rate.
Even then, one thought, maybe we missed out on a few more runs at the end. We have dropped crucial catches in this tournament, ones which could have shaped a few results for us in a different manner. The missed chance of Mahela did turn out to be the turning point of the match.
Our match against Delhi Daredevils becomes even more crucial in the context of the tournament. We have to put it across them to stay afloat. This is that phase of the tournament where a few more unexpected results are bound to happen, before a clear picture emerges about the semifinals.
We can take heart from the fact that the last time we played Delhi at Eden Gardens, we came out victorious. They were a strong unit then also, but our steely resolve did get us to our desired goal.
This time also, we need to become fearless and the entire unit, for this last phase of the tournament, should stand up to give it a one big go.
We have not been very consistent in this tournament. Of the five losses in the nine matches, the one against Kings hurt us the most, because we believed we had the game under control after piling up those runs. We have to get over it, and I am confident with the team we have that we can still pull it off.
Professional Management Group