“The sooner we will forget this game, the better for us” - Yuzvendra Chahal reflects on RR’s hurtful loss to SRH

Rajasthan Royals (RR) leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal has stated that it is important for the team to forget what happened in the match against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Sunday, May 7, and look forward to the remaining games.

RR came up with a very shabby effort to go down to SRH by four wickets in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 clash at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur. Defending a total of 214/2, Rajasthan paid the price for dropped catches and a no-ball from Sandeep Sharma in the last over.

Rajasthan’s loss on Sunday was their third in a row and fifth in their last six matches, making their path to playoffs qualification tougher.

Speaking at a post-match press conference, Chahal admitted that the loss is difficult to digest and said:

“It will take some time, but still, three matches are there. And if we win our remaining three games, there are still chances [of RR qualifying for playoffs]. The sooner we will forget this game, the better for us.

“Such matches hurt you, but it is a part of the game. Definitely, we will storm back together.”

In a somewhat bizarre move, Rajasthan picked left-arm pacer Obed McCoy as the impact sub, but he only bowled one over in Hyderabad’s innings, conceding 13 runs.

On the logic behind bringing in McCoy, Chahal explained:

“Obed was bowling well in the nets and this wicket was a little bit on the slower side. He has a good slower one and he can use his height. That’s why we decided…”

With SRH needing 41 off two overs, RR skipper Sanju Samson gave the penultimate over to Kuldip Yadav. The move backfired as Glenn Phillips slammed him for three sixes and a four before being dismissed. Abdul Samad then hit two sixes in the last over to lift SRH to victory.

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“I was just backing myself and my strength” - Chahal

While RR stumbled with the ball and in the field, Chahal stood out for the team, registering excellent figures of 4/29.

Analyzing his bowling performance, he commented:

“I was just backing myself and my strengths. I was focusing more on my length and was conscious not to bowl it too full."

Chahal dismissed Rahul Tripathi (47) and Aiden Markram (6) in the 18th over to lift RR. With his four-fer, he also equaled Dwayne Bravo’s record for most IPL wickets (183).