Injured Kallis' absence hurt our bowling: Sunil Narine

Kolkata, April 25 (IANS)

Observing that 160 was a defendable target, Kolkata Knight Riders‘ spinner Sunil Narine on Wednesday rued the absence of all-rounder Jacques Kallis, who could not turn up to bowl after getting injured while batting against Mumbai Indians in their IPL encounter at the Eden Gardens here.

“The target of 160 was defendable but we fumbled at the end. Kallis is a world class bowler and his absence badly hurt our chances,” Narine said after the Knights suffered their second defeat at home, losing to Mumbai by six wickets.

“It was a close game and we just could not finish. We need to focus more and train harder,” he said.

Narine conceded that after mustering just four points from seven games, the Knights’ title defence was under threat but said they were still with a chance to sneak into the final four.

“After losing so many games, it is surely difficult. But then we still have a chance to make it to the final four. There are still a few games left and we need to work harder to ensure we win them,” he said.

“It is frustrating to lose so many games and the players have been hurt. We need to pull ourselves up and focus hard and concentrate more,” added Narine.

Meanwhile, skipper Gautam Gambhir credited the Mumbai batsmen, especially opener Dwayne Smith, who scored a blistering 45 ball 62 to be the man of the match.

“It was a close game and we could not manage to cross the finish line. They batted well, credit should go to them. I thought Dwayne batted well, the entire unit did well, they planned it well,” said Gambhir.