‘We keep losing wickets in the powerplay’ – Brian Lara’s evaluation of SRH’s batting unit following their defeat to KKR. Sunrisers Hyderabad failed to chase down a 172-run mark against Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2023 match 47.
The Aiden Markram led Sunrisers Hyderabad played the two time champion Kolkata Knight Riders in the 47th game of the IPL 2023 on Thursday, May 4 at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.
After scoring 171 runs, Hyderabad came in to hunt the target down. However, due to poor performance by the hosts, Hyderabad was defeated, scoring only 166 runs and suffering their sixth loss of the season.
Following the game, head coach Brian Lara took on the field and blasted the batting lineup for the setback. Hyderabad maintained a firm grasp on the game, but they were unable to capitalize after the dismissals of Heinrich Klassen and Aiden Markram.
“We keep losing a couple of wickets in the powerplay. That always sets you back a bit. We asked [Heinrich] Klaasen, who has been batting tremendously for us, to do all the hard work again. He’s coming in at No. 6, and we’ve got five quality players before him,”
Brian Lara said.
“It’s always been a task; I wouldn’t say uphill. Obviously, the batters will know that the responsibility of winning the game on such a good batting track lay in their hands, and we were unable to do it,”
He added.
Brian Lara: Place a little more importance on partnerships
During the run chase against Kolkata, Markram and Klassen scored the most runs for Hyderabad. Both batters scored 41 and 36 runs, respectively, and appeared poised to lead the team to victory. However, after their dismissals, the squad disintegrated under pressure and lost the game. When asked about it, Brian Lara suggested that the batters concentrate more emphasis on sustaining partnerships and employ ‘a little bit of upstairs’ as well.
“I just believe that we have to place a little more importance on partnerships and understanding a little bit of match awareness. It’s all great to be aggressive and have all the intent. But you got to use a little bit of upstairs to get the job done,”
Lara concluded.
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