"We could have taken more chances in middle overs": MI captain Hardik Pandya after defeat to DC

Hardik Pandya (Photo: IPL/ BCCI)

New Delhi [India], April 27 (ANI): Mumbai Indians (MI) captain Hardik Pandya said he wanted batters to take chances in the middle overs and claimed MI were backing themselves to chase down the score in the end against Delhi Capitals (DC) at Arun Jaitley Stadium on Saturday.

Fraser-McGurk equalled his own record for the fastest fifty in IPL 2024, smashing 87 off 27 balls to lay the groundwork for a massive total. DC scored 257 in 20 overs, with cameos from Shai Hope, Rishabh Pant, and Tristan Stubbs. MI seemed to be always behind the chase, and Tilak Verma’s brave effort was insufficient as Delhi prevailed by 10 runs. MI suffered their sixth loss of the season, jeopardising their playoff ambitions significantly.

Speaking after the match, Pandya stated that the game was becoming increasingly close.

“This game is becoming more and more closer. It (the difference) used to be a couple of overs, now it’s becoming a couple of balls. Because of the kind of games and how the bowlers are under pressure, we backed ourselves to do it. If I had to pick something out, we could have taken a couple of more chances in the middle overs,” Pandya said in a post-match presentation.

Pandya defended the decision to bowl first in their loss to DC on Saturday. Pandya won the toss and decided to bowl first because he wanted to know what target they would be chasing. However, the plan quickly backfired, as DC got off to a flying start thanks to Jake Fraser-McGurk.

“The left-handers could have probably gone after Axar a little bit, it’s something we missed out on in terms of game awareness,” Pandya said.

Pandya went on to compliment Fraser-McGurk on his knock and stated that he would not have altered anything about the toss.

“It was quite amazing the way he (Fraser-McGurk) batted, he took calculated risks, he played the field really well. It shows the fearlessness of youth. (If he would’ve done something different at the toss) not really.” he added.

Talking about the match, Fraser-McGurk’s powerful knock, followed by Rasikh Dar Salam, Mukesh Kumar and Khaleel Ahmed’s supercharged pace attack, helped Delhi Capitals (DC) defeat Mumbai Indians by 10 runs in their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 match here at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Saturday.

Rasikh was the pick for the home side, he came on as an impact sub and picked up 3 for 34 in this high-scoring affair, while Mukesh also returned with a three-wicket haul. For MI, Tilak Varma scored 63 runs, while skipper Hardik Pandya scored 46 for MI.

Earlier put to bat first, explosive knocks by DC batters Fraser-McGurk, Tristan Stubbs, and Shai Hope guided the team to a mammoth total of 257/4 against the five-time champions Mumbai.

Mumbai Indians will next play against LSG on Tuesday at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow. (ANI)

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