Bangalore captain Du Plessis explains after losing the IPL league match against Punjab Kings.
The 2nd league match of the IPL series was played at the Mumbai ground yesterday. The Royal Challengers Bangalore, led by Du Plessis, and the Punjab Kings, led by Mayank Agarwal, clashed. Batting first, Bangalore scored 205 for 2 in the allotted 20 overs. Captain Du Plessis top-scored with 88, followed by Virat Kohli (41) and wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik (38).
Following this, Punjab batted towards the Himalayan target of 206 for victory. Playing aggressively from the start, the team scored 208 for 6 in 19 overs. Punjab beat Bangalore by 4 wickets. Shikhar Dhawan and Panuka Rajapaksa top-scored with 43 and Mayank Agarwal top-scored with 32. Odeon Smith, the 7th man to make the cut, hit 25 off 8 balls.
Speaking about the defeat after the match, Bangalore captain Du Plessis said, "This match was fantastic. We missed the victory by a small margin. We bowled well in the beginning and in the middle order. But it was difficult for the bowlers as the snowfall was heavy last time. Only catches will determine the outcome of the game. That’s what we missed. Everyone knows how Odeon Smith will bat. We missed the catch he made in the beginning and made a big mistake," he said.
Du Plessis continued, ‘I'm tired. Dive to block each ball, hitting and banging area rested. Fortunately, no injuries were reported," said Du Plessis with a smile. Fans have blamed the Bangalore team's defeat on Odeon Smith's missed catches and misses at several crucial moments such as the run out.