Sunrisers Hyderabad coach Daniel Vettori feels that after mastering the art of setting totals, it is time for his team to hone their chasing skills as the end of the Indian Premier League approaches. SRH are currently third in the league table with five wins from eight games. Of the five wins, four were batting first. “We were successful in setting the totals and now we have to see how well we are in the chase,” Vettori said after the 35-run defeat against Royal Challengers Bengaluru here on Thursday night.
RCB posted a defiant 206 for 7 after opting to bat and then restricted SRH to 171 for 8.
For a team that has surpassed the 250-run mark three times this season, the target was easily achievable but a rare lapse in the top and middle order cost the hosts dearly.
“Obviously it’s been disappointing where we’ve come from in the last four games; we’ve played some really good cricket and although we lost, you could see if we’d had a few wickets at the back we could still have chased.” Vettori said in the post-match press conference.
“Those early wickets broke everything. We were confident in the scores we were able to make. We thought that 206 was a good result, we probably left a few runs on the field. But there was confidence in the group because of past performances.
“We also knew it was being prepared by the premiers and how well they played, and today they had a bad day and that’s cricket,” he said.
The former New Zealand cricketer said there are no easy games in the IPL.
“Unfortunately, we didn’t get support in the middle stage. It’s a tough loss, but we understand that every team in IPL can beat every team. There are no easy games,” Vettori said.
The coach considered that the role of anchor is not important in games with many goals.
“I think the wicket was still very good. The guys who came out said it’s a surface where you can score. The anchor role when you’re chasing 207 is difficult to get to, you obviously need to be aggressive. For some, sitting back and playing the role of anchor is a little complicated.” Meanwhile, RCB all-rounder Swapnil Singh was relieved after his team broke their six-game losing streak.
“The experience was good, but we won the game that was most important. When you win a game, the team’s rhythm changes. It’s a good feeling. We lost the last two games by a small difference, but we still have a long way to go “, he said.
Swapnil said he felt the target was enough on this wicket despite SRH boasting of a super-aggressive batting order.
“The ball was stopping. Our main objective was to spin the ball and bowl slower like a fast bowler. It helped, we knew they were going to attack us hard and obviously they did.”
“Yes, we felt that because the wicket also stopped when we were batting and there was no dew,” he said.
This story originally appeared on ndtv.com read the full story
