Rishabh Pant blames crowd and technical issue for DRS blunder vs KKR

Delhi Capitals (DC) skipper Rishabh Pant was disappointed with the way his team performed in the game against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. He admitted that they were outplayed by the opposition and they needed to reflect better as a team.

In what was the biggest win in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) thumped Delhi Capitals (DC) by a big margin of 106 runs. This was the third loss for Rishabh Pant’s team as they found themselves reeling at the bottom half of the table. 

It was a poor game with both bat and ball for the Delhi Capitals as they weren’t allowed by the KKR to take charge of the game. Sunil Narine, 85 runs off just 39 balls,  put the bowlers under pressure right from the start and after that, they couldn’t control things. 

Debutant Angkrish Raghuvanshi wasn’t too far away as he impressed many with his half-century. Before Andre Russell (41) and Rinku Singh (26) finished the innings on high. Based on the brutal effort with the bat, Kolkata Knight Riders posted a total of 272 runs.

Delhi Capitals struggled to get going with the bat as Vaibhav Arora and Mitchell Starc took KKR off to a great start as they combined to pick 4 quick wickets. Rishabh Pant (55) and Tristan Stubbs (54) hit fifties but it wasn’t enough as they were bundled out for just 166 runs. 

Rishabh Pant admitted that they were all over the place and they could’ve done better with the ball. He revealed his message to his team after the first innings and while speaking to broadcasters, he explained: 

“We were just all over the place (with the ball), we could have done better, and it is one of those days I feel. As a batting unit, we talked about going hard (after the target) and that’s how we approach these games because it is better to be all-out trying to go for the total than not chase it down.”

Rishabh Pant also talked about non-DRS moments, saying that errors on the screen led to the blunder. During the 4th over of the innings, the keeper-batter had opted for DRS against Narine but umpires didn’t allow him as he was running late of time. 

“It was quite loud (the venue) and couldn’t see the timer on the screen (talking about the non-DRS moments) and there was some issue with the screen as well, there are some things you can control and some you cannot control, you just need to go with the flow,” he said. 

Time to reflect better as a team, as an individual and come back strong in the next game – Rishabh Pant 

Rishabh Pant further made a strong statement, saying that they need to reflect on the things they are lacking and come back stronger in the next game. He also talked about his fitness, saying that he is enjoying himself. He added. 

“Time to reflect better as a team, as an individual and come back strong in the next game. I am enjoying each and every day (talking about his fitness and comeback) and cricket has its own ups and downs, and at the same time you can try and give your best as an individual.”

Delhi Capitals will be next seen in action when they take on Mumbai Indians on 7th April.