The experience of defending less than 10 runs in the final over in the IPL made him confident about a similar win against Mumbai in the Syed Mushtaq Ali group-D tie, said the Karnataka captain Vinay Kumar.
“I was very confident going into the last over with 12 runs needed. Most times it is very difficult to defend, but I have done that in the past in IPL defending less than 10 runs. So, that was running through in my mind and even after being hit for a first ball six (by Abhishek Nayar), I was very confident that it will be our game,” the Karnataka captain said after the match.
Vinay Kumar said the team is looking to recover from the little slips it made in the season that saw it missing the knockout berths in the Ranji Trophy and the Vijay Hazare tournaments. “Our team has always been confident. From outside it looks like an ordinary season. But overall our season has been very good. It has not been outstanding how it was in the last two years but we lost our chance narrowly. After losing the first game here, it was a must-win situation and it is nice to see the win coming from a good team effort,” he said.
Mumbai captain Aditya Tare said the team’s batting slipped in the 19th over, where it could manage only eight of the required 20 runs. Tare said the dismissals of Surya Kumar Yadav (15th over) and the penultimate ball dismissal of Abhishek Nayar spoiled the chances of a win.
“In the end it came down to four balls, four runs and then two balls, two runs. Unfortunately, we lost (Abhishek) Nayar when we were poised for a win. It is difficult for a No. 11 (Tambe) to come in and play the last ball for two runs. It was our game in the last over with a first-ball six. Unfortunately, Nayar got out at a critical moment,” Tare said. “Had he played for two or three more overs, it would have been an easy win for us. A couple of wickets fell in the middle overs - myself and Surya – that also made things difficult,” the Mumbai captain added.
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