Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni blamed batting failures for CSK’s 10-run loss to Kolkata in their 2020 Indian Premier League (IPL) clash in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates , on Wednesday (October 7).
Chasing a 168 target for victory, CSK settled comfortably at 99-for-1 after 12 overs, but a mid-order collapse changed the course of the game and the team led by Dhoni finished 157-for-5 in 20 overs.
Dhoni noted that CSK lost the game in the second half of their innings and said it was about time CSK’s hitters started acting.
“In the middle of the overs there was a phase where they threw 2-3 good overs. If we hit better and didn’t lose 2-3 wickets in a row, we should have been careful in the first 5-6 overs. Curran was really good with the ball. ball, and I think we did well on the ball overall, but the batters disappointed the pitchers today, “Dhoni said in the postgame presentation.
“The strike rotation was important, but I think there were almost no limits in the later overs, so we need to be innovative at the end when they are continually hitting a long back. That’s where we need to adapt better with the bat and I don’t think that we did that, “he added.
This was CSK’s fourth loss at IPL 2020 and they are currently in fifth place on the points table, while KKR jumped one place to third after registering three wins in 5 games.
CSK will now face Royal Challengers Bangalore in Dubai on Saturday, while KKR will play Kings XI Punjab in Abu Dhabi on the same day.
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