Delhi Capitals captain Shreyas Iyer cut a disappointed figure as he walked up to do his post-match duties after their 14-run defeat to Kings XI Punjab in Mohali.
Delhi Capitals were cruising when they were 144 for 3 in 16.3 overs in chase of 167 at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium. Colin Ingram and Rishabh Pant stitched a 50-plus partnership for the fourth wicket and it seemed the duo would take the Capitals past the finish line with ease. However, Mohammed Shami triggered a collapse when he removed Rishabh Pant in the fourth ball of the 17th over. Following the wicket of Rishabh Pant, Delhi Capitals lost the plot as they lost their last seven wickets for just 8 runs.
“Really disappointing. With the way we were going, we came ball to ball and to lose from there, really disappointing. We didn’t play smart cricket and Punjab outplayed us in all the departments. They were really cool and calm in that situation. I am really speechless. It is a crucial match and losing such matches is not going to benefit us. The way Ingram was going, with ball to ball, it is really difficult to see us losing wickets like that” he said.
Stressing on the need to remain positive after two tight games, Iyer said:
“It is really going to be important for us to stay motivated. These are the small factors we have to work hard on. Mentally we have trained ourselves on how to finish the games. We are getting good starts but need to focus on winning the games.”
Having lost two of their four games, Delhi Capitals will take on Sunrisers Hyderabad in their next IPL 2019 match at home on Thursday.
