Punjab Kings skipper Shikhar Dhawan admitted they didn’t put enough runs on the board after their six-wicket loss against defending champions Gujarat Titans at the IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali on Thursday. PBKS got off to a decent start as they were 52-2 after the end of the PowerPlay overs.
Matthew Short, who was adjudged Big Bash’s MVP, was able to hit the ground running as he scored 36 runs from 24 balls. However, Bhanuka Rajapaksa (20 off 26), Jitesh Sharma (25 off 23), and Sam Curran (22 off 22) failed to get going in the innings on a good batting pitch as they scored around run-a-ball.
Shahrukh Khan added the finishing touches with a 9-ball 22 to help his team post 153 runs on the board, but it was always going to be a below-par score. In fact, none of the PBKS batters could go past the 40-run mark.
On the other hand, Gujarat Titans got off to a flying start in the PowerPlay overs as Wriddhiman Saha and Shubman Gill were able to get going. The visitors added 56-1 in the first six overs and they always kept the required run rate under check.
Shubman Gill scored a fine knock of 67 runs from 49 balls but Sai Sudharsan and David Miller failed to hit the straps. However, when three runs were needed off the last two balls, Rahul Tewatia scored a boundary to get his team over the line.
Shikhar Dhawan said in the post-match presentation, “Agree with you on that thing. We did not put many runs on the board. We have to rectify that thing going forward. Absolutely – if you see the number of dot balls, if a team plays 56 balls, you end up losing the game. Losing early wickets puts you on the back foot and we need to work on that. Very proud of the bowlers, it was not a big total and taking the game till the end was tremendous. He came for practice yesterday, he pulled his muscle and another 2-3 days, he should be good to go [on Liam Livingstone’s fitness].”
Punjab Kings have now lost their last two matches and they will look to bounce back to winning ways. The Shikhar Dhawan-led team will travel to Lucknow for their clash against Lucknow Super Giants on Saturday.
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