“One of those days when everything works in the favor of the opponent” - Wasim Jaffer on PBKS’ 56-run loss to LSG

Punjab Kings (PBKS) batting coach Wasim Jaffer has stated that their loss to the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 match on Friday, April 28 was just one of those days when everything the opposition did worked out well. Stating that Punjab’s bowlers had an off day, he conceded that they could have done better.

LSG hammered PBKS by 56 runs in match number 38 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 at the Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali. Batting first after losing the toss, Lucknow notched up 257/5 on the board, the second-highest total ever in the IPL. In response, Punjab were all-out for 201 in 19.5 overs.

Reflecting on the defeat, Jaffer credited the opposition batters and lamented that nothing went right for them with the ball. Speaking at the post-match press conference, he stated:

“The way they (LSG batters) started in the powerplay, didn’t stop at all - Ayush Badoni, Marcus Stonis, Nicholas Pooran, everybody performed. When somebody plays like that, it becomes very difficult. They didn’t lose the momentum after the powerplay. You can say it was an off day for our bowling.”

While refusing to be critical of the bowlers, he admitted that they could have bowled to the larger side of the boundary and varied their pace a bit more. Jaffer commented:

“Our bowling has defended thrice in difficult conditions. But yes, we could have used Plan B. Bowled in the larger area, used some slower balls, but we didn’t do that. But we have to credit their batters, they batted brilliantly. It’s one of those days when everything works in the favor of the opponent and you are clueless. But I feel our bowlers will come back strongly.”

Stoinis top-scored for LSG with 72 off 40 against PBKS on Friday. Kyle Mayers scored 54 off 24, Ayush Badoni 43 off 24, and Nicholas Pooran (45 off 19).

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“When the opposition scores 257, chasing will always be difficult” - Jaffer

Asked if he felt Punjab’s decision to bowl first after winning the toss backfired, Jaffer replied that it’s always easier to draw a conclusion in hindsight.

Backing the decision to field first, he said:

“In hindsight, you can say our plan backfired, but then this is the tendency of all the IPL teams that they bowl first after winning the toss. There was some dew when we were practicing. But when the opposition scores 257, chasing will always be difficult. We could have bowled better.”

Despite the loss, Jaffer credited the young batters for ensuring Punjab reached 200 in the chase after losing skipper Shikhar Dhawan for 1. The 45-year-old said:

“Lot of times in such chases you get bowled out for 120-130. It then affects your net run rate. Yes, a 50-run loss in T20s is a big margin. But scoring 200 runs is still a good job. Atharva Taide, who was just playing his third or fourth match, was a positive.

“The way Jitesh Sharma played, if we could have managed to restrict the Lucknow batters to 220-230, the match could be different, but all this is hindsight.”

Taide top-scored for Punjab with 66 off 36, while Jitesh Sharma played a cameo of 24 in 10 balls.