New Delhi: Putting up a brave front after Kolkata Knight Riders' 40-run loss against Delhi Daredevils here at the Feroz Shah Kotla, David Hussey said that the team needs to be consistent if the 'Purple brigade' were to make it into the top four.
Excerpts
On whether he thought 170 was gettable
Yeah I did of course, gettable, very gettable especially with that batting line up from the top with Sourav [Ganguly] and Chris [Gayle] right down to the bottom with [Ajit] Agarkar and [Wriddhiman] Saha in the end. So [it’s been] disappointing, we probably didn’t bat our best today but I am sure we will regroup for the Deccan game at the Eden Garden in a few days time.
On the superb catch he took to dismiss Paul Collingwood
At that moment at the boundary I had to toss it up, so [I was] pretty lucky I took it. [I can] take something out of the game I guess.
On what went wrong
We probably just didn’t play our best, we didn’t execute our yorkers at the end of the innings, they probably got five to ten runs too many and yeah, our batting didn’t click. I probably took up too many balls in my innings. But I’m sure that once we play at Eden gardens, our home ground, in front of the big home crowd, you will see a very good Kolkata Knight Riders team.
On David Warner
We had a lot of plans [to contain him]. They certainly didn’t work. We had a plan A, B, C and D but unfortunately David [came up with] probably one of the best innings he has ever played and he pretty much won the game for the Delhi Daredevils team. Our batters [need] to take a few notes from that and hopefully we can replicate that in the Deccan game at Eden Gardens in front of the packed house.
On whether opening with Chris Gayle was pre-planned
No, it was a bit of a plan. Some T20 international [players] open the bowling against David Warner and the latter [has been] getting great success. Chris, I thought, bowled superbly tonight. He bowled two overs in the first six and he did his job as a fine, all-round cricketer.
On the batsmen, especially Ganguly, going into a shell
I sort of disagree a little with that. We play with a lot of freedom […] Sourav couldn’t probably play that well tonight. We lost a couple of early wickets and he probably thought [it best] to consolidate the game. Maybe [he’s] not like David Warner - he is someone who bats out of his skin. But the Deccan game - Eden Gardens, packed house, home fans - I’m sure you will probably see a lot of boundaries hit and Sourav probably top score.
On missing Shane Bond
Yeah, Shane is a very classy performer isn’t he? He is a world-class bowler. He was sorely missed tonight but he is a little bit ill. I am sure once we get him back leading the attack, we will be chasing say 150 rather than the 170 we [chased] tonight.
On the X-Factor needed by KKR
Yeah, we do need an X-factor. David Warner was probably the Delhi Daredevils’ X-Factor - he came in [with a blinder] tonight and he can probably win two or three games out of the eight for Delhi. We need that kind of a thing with our team, whether it is Chris [Gayle], myself, Brad Hodge, Owais Shah or Sourav himself. We need somebody to take the game on and hopefully win three, four, five games for the Kolkata Knight Riders.
On why Ishant Sharma was used for only one over
Ishant probably didn’t bowl as well tonight, the wicket probably didn’t suit his style of bowling. But he is still a world-class bowler and is a great success for the Kolkata team. I’m sure once you see him bowling at his home ground in Eden Gardens, [up front for the] Kolkata Knight Riders team, you will see probably get three, four or five wickets and be the best bowler for KKR.
On KKR’s chances of reaching the semis
We are definitely going to make the semi-finals and our boys are very much looking forward to it. What we have to do is start playing consistent and aggressive cricket with lots of freedom and I’m sure you will see a very talented Kolkata Knight Riders team make the semis and do a lot of damage right round in the game.
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