IPL 2020: 'It is a real shame not to kick on in the tournament and make the final' - Kane Williamson after SRH's loss to DC

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) batsman Kane Williamson has mentioned that it is a pity the franchise could not make it through to the final of IPL 2020 after the comeback they staged in the latter half of the tournament.

He made this observation in the post-match press conference after the David Warner-led side's defeat against the Delhi Capitals in Qualifier 2.

Talking about the SRH run-chase, Kane Williamson pointed out that the team gave themselves a chance with some fruitful partnerships in the middle after having lost a few early wickets in pursuit of a huge target.

"Delhi Capitals put up a very competitive total on the board which going into the second innings there are always risks that need to be taken. Unfortunately, we did not get off to the best of starts but managed to build a few partnerships through the middle period and we still had a little bit of opportunity."

He lamented the fact that SRH could not pull off the run-chase and get through to the final, but praised the entire team for their efforts.

"It is a real shame not to kick on in the tournament and make the final but I think, particularly in the last three weeks, the guys can be very proud of the way they played."

Reflecting on the entire season for SRH, the Kiwi captain observed that the team was a little slow to get off the blocks and hampered by a few narrow defeats.

"It was a season of fine lines, we had a number of very very close losses and we weren't perhaps playing our best. As a team, we were looking for that rhythm to our play and it perhaps took a little bit of time."

Williamson expressed happiness about SRH having found their mojo in the last few must-win encounters while iterating that it would have been great had they made it through to the title decider.

"It was nice that we were able to find it at the crunch time and win 4 or 5 in a row which gave us the opportunity but like I said we would have loved to have gone through but it was not meant to be today."

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Kane Williamson on the youngsters who shone for SRH

Abdul Samad played a belligerent knock for SRH in yesterday's encounter [P/C: iplt20.com]

Kane Williamson lauded Abdul Samad for his fighting knock for SRH in the run-chase although the target eventually proved to be a bridge too far to cross.

"Abdul Samad, a really talented young player in our team, came out and hit the ball beautifully and allowed us to get back into the game although there was still quite a bit of work to do."

Stand out players of our final game of the tournament 👏🧡#DCvSRH #OrangeArmy #KeepRising #IPL2020 pic.twitter.com/EIMON17PBl

— SunRisers Hyderabad (@SunRisers) November 8, 2020

The former SRH captain painted a bright future for the franchise, with some of the youngsters getting their opportunities and showing their wares on the big stage.

"Some really good signs. A really interesting season where there was a mixture of experience and young players, who had a number of opportunities throughout which I think was really good for them and for the team looking forward."

While taking the names of Priyam Garg, Samad and Abhishek Sharma as some of the SRH youngsters who made the best use of the chances given to them, Williamson was particularly effusive in his praise for T Natarajan for his exceptional bowling at the death.

"It was great throughout the tournament that they were able to have those opportunities, a number of players - Priyam, Samad, Abhishek and Natarajan, who really burst onto the scene with his death bowling which has been exceptional throughout."

T Natarajan came to the fore as a death bowler in the Sunrisers Hyderabad lineup. He nailed the yorkers almost on every occasion and got the better of some of the top batsmen in the cricketing world, including AB de Villiers in the crunch Eliminator encounter.

You Say Yorkers, We not only hear Jasprit Bumrah, But we also hear Thangarasu Natarajan. Nattu 🔥. pic.twitter.com/USteTxdtv4

— RJVV55 🇮🇳🏏 (@RJVV55) November 6, 2020