The SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) batsmen, according to Rohan Gavaskar, could have approached their run chase against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on Thursday, May 4, at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in a better manner.
The former Indian cricketer noted that it was natural given his seeming excellent form for Heinrich Klaasen to be dismissed while attempting to play an attacking shot. SRH captain Aiden Markram, on the other hand, should not have lost his wicket at such a critical time, according to Gavaskar.
Notably, Markram and Klaasen both scored 41 and 36 runs to help Hyderabad get the game going. However, after the two batters were out, the team faltered and ultimately lost by a score of five runs while trying to reach a 172-run target.
Rohan Gavaskar said
Gavaskar told to Cricbuzz what happened after the match:
“You have got to take responsibility and use a little bit of cricketing sense. Heinrich Klaasen, I can understand, because he was striking it well. Sometimes as a batter, when are in the zone, you have got that extra confidence.
“Aiden Markram though, if you are going at run-a-ball, then you’ve got to see it through. When Markram got out, the run rate wasn’t that high that he had to be more aggressive than he normally is.”
Given that there were no other renowned batters ahead of Abdul Samad, Rohan Gavaskar further noted that he was under extreme pressure. He managed 21 runs off 18 balls before succumbing to Varun Chakravarthy in the last over, failing to lead his team to victory.
“Abdul Samad came in to bat at a slightly tougher time when you’ve lost wickets and are thinking, ‘If I get out here, who is coming in to bat?’ If he did this when they were three or four wickets down, then it is a different story. If you are coming to bat at the number that he did, knowing that if he got out the game was done and dusted, it adds a little more pressure on you and you want to take it deep,” Gavaskar added.
In the final over, Hyderabad needed to score nine runs. Their chances of winning the game at home were dashed when Samad was removed on the third ball after being caught at the deep mid-wicket fence.
