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'We Were Maybe 10 Runs Short…,” Says Titans Skipper Hardik Pandya After Defeat to Royals

image-lgjqvxz2Hardik Pandya congratulates Hetmyer (IPLT20.COM)

Gujarat Titans went down to Rajasthan Royals at home, despite holding a firm grip in the first half of the second innings. After the defending champions charted 177-7 upfront, new-ball pacers Hardik Pandya and Mohammed Shami both struck with a wicket each as the Royals slumped to 26-2 at powerplay.

Moreover, Sanju Samson and co. managed just 53-3 at the halfway stage, before the captain launched a counter attacking assault with his 32-ball 60.

After the match, Titans skipper Pandya spoke about the unpredictable nature of the game, and stated that his batters fell short while posing a commendable total in the first innings.

Hardik Pandya says team to take lessons from the defeat

Rajasthan Royals hunted down Gujarat Titans’ 177 with four balls to spare, with skipper Sanju Samson and Shimron Hetmyer headlining the run-chase with sparkling half-centuries. Remarkably, the hosts had them floored at 53-3 at the halfway stage.

After the defeat, Titans skipper Hardik Pandya spoke about the unpredictable nature of the game, and how the loss is going to be another lesson for his team.

“That's the beauty about this game. The game is never over. That was the message to the boys as well. The game is never over until it's over. So I think this is one more lesson for us,”

Pandya also defended his decision of bringing Noor Ahmad as his Impact player instead of Irish pacer Josh Little. Ahmed conceded 29 runs off his 2.2 overs, and failed to contain a charging Hetmyer in the final over of the game. Pandya said:

“He's someone who is difficult to pick as well. He actually bowled well. I don't want to be harsh on him. He got us a big breakthrough which we wanted but I think the other bowlers did not execute,”

The veteran all-rounder also pinned blame on his batters for the loss. He believes that his side should have posted a bigger target upfront, especially after blazing knocks from Shubman Gill, David Miller and Pandya himself.

“I felt we were short some runs at the innings break. They bowled some good overs but we should have gone harder to put the game [out of reach] and get a 200 total. When I was watching outside, I did feel we were maybe 10 runs short.”