“It sort of killed us” - Brian Lara on SRH losing 3 wickets in quick succession against LSG

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) head coach Brian Lara lamented that losing three wickets in quick succession in their IPL 2023 match against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) caused irreparable damage to their chances. He also conceded that Hyderabad will have to improve their batting going forward in the tournament.

SRH went down to LSG by five wickets in match number 10 of IPL 2023 at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow on Friday, April 7. Batting first, Hyderabad were 50/1 in the eighth over. However, they lost three quick wickets quickly to slump to 55/4.

In the end, SRH only managed to post 121/8, a total Lucknow chased down in 16 overs. Reflecting on Hyderabad’s second consecutive loss in IPL 2023, Lara commented:

“We are losing a lot of wickets in clumps. In the first game, we lost two wickets in the first over and tonight (Friday) we lost three wickets in seven balls, which changed the complexion of the game, so we definitely have to look at our batting and come up with a solution for it.

“The period of time where we lost Anmolpreet (Singh), captain Aiden Markaram and Harry Brook, it sort of killed us at that point.”

The West Indian legend stated that the pitch in Lucknow wasn’t conducive to stroke play, but admitted that SRH batters needed to pull up their socks. Lara opined:

“I think we didn’t play on a pitch that was conducive to proper stroke play. Not using that as an excuse but I think we definitely have to improve our batting.”

Abdul Samad (21* off 10) struck a couple of sixes to ensure SRH crossed the 120-run mark.

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“A total of 150-160 would have been a different story” - Brian Lara

On the team’s decision to bat first, Lara explained that they knew the pitch was going to turn and also that much dew wasn’t expected in the second half. He elaborated:

“I think the pitch was obviously going be a turner, We felt if we got the better part of the pitch it would be rewarding for us. We felt that there wasn’t much dew on the ground, so it was nothing to worry about. I think a total of 150-160 would have been a different story. We lost three wickets in seven balls and that sort of stopped our progress.”

The SRH head coach also gave credit to LSG’s spinners for utilizing the conditions and bowling very smartly. He said:

“They bowled better and they batted better than us on that pitch. We have to take responsibility as a team and try to pick ourselves up for the next game. The ball spun and they also bowled smartly. The fast bowlers using the slower balls, the cutters… It was difficult for the batters.”

Krunal Pandya stood out for LSG with 3/18, while Amit Mishra (2/23) and Ravi Bishnoi (1/16) also impressed.