IPL 2021: “Execution against Chris Morris wasn’t quite there” - Ricky Ponting
Delhi Capitals (DC) coach Ricky Ponting has said that although the team discussed plans on how to bowl to Chris Morris, the bowlers erred in their execution.
Rajasthan Royals (RR) came from behind to defeat DC by three wickets in Mumbai on Thursday. All-rounder Chris Morris slammed four sixes in an unbeaten 36 to turn the game on its head after RR were reeling at 42-5 in a chase of 148.
Speaking at a virtual press conference following DC’s defeat, Ponting conceded that DC could have done better with their execution to Chris Morris, saying in this regard:
"We probably gave them a few too many easy balls. The length wasn’t quite where it needed to be. If you look at the replay of the game, if we bowled a decent yorker, he (Chris Morris) didn’t score off it. But if it was back of a length, about stump height, he didn’t get hold of many either, especially with the pace on the ball. We talked about how we wanted to bowl to him. The execution probably wasn’t quite there".
Ponting did point out, though, that the dew severely hampered the fast bowlers towards the end of the innings, which is why a few full-tosses were delivered.
“You’ve got to factor in how wet and dewy the ball was in the second innings of the game. It wasn’t easy for the bowlers to grip. There were a few full-tosses at the end. When the fast bowlers were bowling, the ball was slipping out of their hands a bit. That’s part and parcel of IPL. We knew coming here that there would probably be a little bit of dew in the second half of the game. We didn’t adapt and execute as well as we could have tonight," rued Ponting.
Some guys get paid to bat; some guys get paid to slog: Chris Morris
After playing a significant hand in RR’s win over DC, Chris Morris said that he was happy to play the role of a lower-order slogger in the team.
Speaking at the end of the game, Chris Morris was asked about why he batted lower down the order despite his obvious batting prowess. The all-rounder made a startlingly candid admission:
"Some guys get paid to bat, and some guys get paid to slog; I know which one I am. I am a slogger who swings everything he can. You know, I play so much golf".
Chris Morris also praised the DC bowlers for making life difficult for the RR batsmen. He said in this regard:
"I thought Delhi bowled really well; David (Miller) played an unplayable knock. (In) T20 cricket, anything can happen in the end; fortunately, it went our way today. Dew plays a part here at the Wankhede; it does start to skid on. They hit the back of a length a lot better than we did. You saw how the batsman knicked and skied the balls. We got a few wickets early on, but they hit their lengths way better than we did. But at the same time, our guys are experienced in taking pace off the ball and executed really well today".
While Morris’ cameo took RR home in a tense chase, Jaydev Unadkat set up the win with three early strikes, earning the Man of the Match award.