"It was close, but not close enough" - Kane Williamson assesses defeat against LSG in IPL 2022 

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) captain Kane Williamson acknowledged an improved performance from his side against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on Monday, according to the IPL 2022 schedule. However, he believes they have to improve to cross the line.

The 2016 IPL Champions suffered their second defeat in succession to remain at the bottom of the IPL points table 2022.

SRH fell short by 12 runs against a spirited Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) side at the DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai. Chasing 170 for victory, cameos from Rahul Tripathi and Nicholas Pooran ended in vain courtesy of some stellar death bowling by Avesh Khan and Jason Holder.

Opining that SRH began the contest on a bright note, Williamson said during the post-match presentation:

"I suppose if you look at the performance, it was a lot better and much improved from our first outing. I thought the start with the ball was outstanding on a pretty good surface, to have three in the powerplay, we were in a pretty strong position; if we could break that partnership"

SRH were once again potent with the new ball and had reduced LSG to 27-3 early on in the game. However, a 87-run partnership between Deepak Hooda and KL Rahul turned the tide in their favor.

Applauding the pair for coming out of a precarious situation, Williamson said:

"Credit to the way they played, Deepak Hooda and KL Rahul - outstanding partnership, and probably it was largely the difference. To get 170 from the position they were in, was an outstanding effort. I suppose with the bat, there were glimpses, it was close, but not close enough."

The foundation laid by the duo helped the likes of Ayush Badoni, Krunal Pandya and Jason Holder play cameos and push the total in the first innings.

Williamson praised the bowling unit's efforts to restrict LSG to 169, when at one stage the KL Rahul-led side were targeting 180-185. The SRH skipper said:

"I thought the guys, who had the roles with the ball did really good. The start we got was outstanding and some really key death overs as well. Although they got to a competitive total, they would have liked to get a few more and for us it is the small margins. Few ones and a few twos and all of a sudden, the chase takes quite a different shape."

Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowled a brilliant spell, especially at the death, to contain the run flow. Washington Sundar was instrumental in the powerplay after not being given the new ball last time around.

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"I suppose 170 on any day is a challenge" - Kane Williamson

The fresh pitch at the DY Patil Stadium was a sporting surface with enough help across all departments. The batters were able to capitalize after settling. Meanwhile, fast bowlers and spinners were both rewarded equally for bowling in the right areas.

Terming the pitch as a good one to bat on, Williamson said:

"It looked like a good surface. I suppose 170 on any day is a challenge, and you have to play well but at the same time you know, if we could build those partnerships and get off to a reasonable start, build a platform, then we have got enough firepower in the hut to chase those totals down."

He concluded:

"It did not quite work today, a lot of learning as well so, important that we reflect on those small margins and move forward with some positives."

SRH will next face the under-fire CSK at the same venue on April 17 (Saturday) in an afternoon game.