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Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain Eoin Morgan has said that his team did not put up enough runs on the board for their bowlers to challenge Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Mumbai on Saturday.
Asked to bat first after losing the toss, KKR could only muster a pedestrian total of 133 for 9, as Chris Morris wreaked havoc with figures of 4 for 23. RR chased down the total without much trouble, winning the match by six wickets.
Speaking at the post-match press conference, Eoin Morgan admitted that the KKR batsmen need to take the blame for the defeat. He said in this regard:
“The batting was the letdown, and we lacked a lot of intent and impetus throughout our whole innings. We were behind the eight ball right from the get-go. Rajasthan Royals adapted to the wicket very well, and we didn’t. I would say the majority is with the bat. Possibly, we were 40 short, which is a lot in a T20 game. There was too much for our bowlers to do tonight.”
Wicket at Wankhede was not as good as in previous games: Eoin Morgan
While Eoin Morgan was disappointed with his team’s batting, he also noted that the wicket at the Wankhede wasn’t as good as it was in the previous game. Eoin Morgan elaborated in this respect:
“It's in stark contrast to the last game. We had guys who built partnerships but probably lacked a little bit of intent. The wicket today wasn't as good as it has been at the Wankhede in the previous games. That was a challenge in itself, and we couldn't overcome that challenge, leaving us with quite a lot to do. Every time we seemed to take an attacking option, we lost a wicket, which is extremely disappointing. Towards the back end of the innings, that left us with a lot to do, which we didn’t obviously do."
Eoin Morgan observed that the KKR batsmen are capable of playing match-winning knocks, but that just didn’t happen for them on the day, saying:
“The clearer the mind, the easier it is. Within the capabilities of our side, there is an element of playing smart cricket and building partnerships within that. Ultimately, one guy needs to play free-flowing cricket; it wasn’t there today unfortunately. Two sides struggling to gain momentum in the tournament, and we missed big two points. We move to Ahmedabad. Hopefully the venue suits us.”
Morgan’s poor run with the bat continued against RR, as he was run out without facing a ball.
