IPL 2021: A total of 140-150 would have tested SRH on this surface - PBKS assistant coach Andy Flower
Punjab Kings (PBKS) assistant coach Andy Flower has said that the team could have given Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) a tough fight had they posted 140-150 on the board.
Batting first after winning the toss on a challenging surface in Chennai, PBKS were rolled over for a modest 120 all out. In reply, SRH romped home by nine wickets.
At a virtual press conference following his team's defeat, Andy Flower conceded that PBKS did not put up enough runs on the board. Responding to a query by Sportskeeda in this regard, he said:
“The conditions were pretty tough today for batting. We knew that it would be tough, just looking at the pitch. It was dry; it was cracking already before the game started. I don’t think we handled it as well as we could have. We lost wickets early. And even though we have a long batting line-up, we have an excellent player, Fabian Allen at 8, we struggled to get a total that was really going to test SRH.”
The PBKS assistant coach added that the batsmen could have been smarter with their stroke-play, saying:
“On a pitch like this, you have got to be quite canny about the way you operate. There are not going to be many boundaries, certainly not like in Mumbai. We weren’t good enough to get 140 or 150 on that pitch, which would have really tested the opposition.”
Was tough to adapt but knew what to expect: PBKS captain KL Rahul
Speaking after the game, PBKS captain KL Rahul said that batting was tough on the surface, but his team could have fared better. At the post-match presentation, Rahul said:
“It was tough to adapt, but we knew, having watched the games, what to expect. We tried to get used to the conditions as quickly as we could but we were 10-15 runs short. A few batsmen got set and couldn't get those 30s-40s that could have got us through. Hopefully we learn from this mistake; we have a game in a few days, hopefully we come and win. Every game from now is important for us, and we've always been in that situation, where we get in a place where we have to win every game. Not a bad place to be, to be honest.”
SRH chased down a target of 121 runs in 18.4 overs, courtesy of Jonny Bairstow's unbeaten 63 off 56 balls, to notch up their first win in four games in the tournament.