Bengaluru. The journey ahead for Royal Challengers Bangalore, which has lost 6 matches after playing 7 matches so far in the Indian Premier League 2024, has become difficult. Head coach Andy Flower admitted after his team’s sixth defeat that each of the remaining 7 matches would now be played like a semi-final. Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan had said after the defeat against Hyderabad that now this team will have to win every match which is impossible. Only a miracle can take the team forward.
RCB had to face defeat by 25 runs against Sunrisers Hyderabad here on Monday. Flower said on ‘RCB Game Day’, “This is definitely the time for the knockouts and we will treat every match like a semi-final now.” But we have to think that we should make a strong comeback.
Sunrisers Hyderabad batsmen set a record score of IPL by scoring 287 runs for three wickets against the directionless bowlers of RCB. Flower admitted that it was a difficult night for his team. “It was a really tough night on the field because he batted so hard,” he said.
While chasing the target, Dinesh Karthik scored 83 runs in 35 balls and captain Faf Du Plessis scored 62 runs in 28 balls for RCB. Flower said, “I am very proud of the kind of spirit we showed with the bat at the crease. We lost the match but we are proud of the way we batted.
Former England coach praised Karthik and said that considering the way he destroyed the Sunrisers Hyderabad bowlers, it would not be surprising if this wicketkeeper batsman is selected in India’s T20 World Cup team. He said, “Dinesh Karthik is presenting his claim for India’s World Cup team with his batting and is getting better and better on the field.”
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Tags: Andy Flower, IPL 2024, RCB vs SRH, Royal Challengers Bangalore
FIRST PUBLISHED: April 16, 2024, 20:29 IST