Hardik Pandya discusses MI’s miserable season and the loss to KKR, saying, “We haven’t played enough good cricket.”

The Mumbai Indians (MI), captained by Hardik Pandya, lost to the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by 18 runs on Saturday, May 11, at the famous Eden Gardens due to rain.

Mumbai, chasing 158 runs in the 16-over-per-side match, got off to a quick start with to a 22-ball 40 from Ishan Kishan. Alongside Rohit Sharma at the top, he contributed 65 runs. But after that combination broke down, the KKR spin duo of Varun Chakaravarthy (2/17) and Sunil Narine (1/21) strangled the runs out of the opposition at regular intervals. Despite their high cost, Harshit Rana and Andre Russell each claimed two wickets. The five-time champs were eventually limited to 139/8.

Hardik said that his team hasn’t been able to play quality cricket all season long after suffering his ninth defeat as MI captain. Regarding the game, he stated that the bowlers’ effort was commendable and the pitch was tacky. Nevertheless, following a strong start, the batting let them down.

As a batting unit, we had the base, but we were unable to build on it, which cost us. We needed momentum because the wicket was sticky, but we were unable to capitalise after that, Hardik remarked following the game.

“I thought the bowlers played well, considering the conditions, and their score was par. The balls hit the cover and got moist as they came back from the boundary. They performed admirably. Despite appearing par, the total was winning. I just want to go have fun and play some decent cricket.

We haven’t played enough excellent cricket, but that has been our motto from the beginning, Hardik Pandya continued.

Following an initial weather delay, the game was shortened to 16 overs each team. After winning the toss, Hardik asked the home team to bat first. In the first few overs, Nuwan Thushara and Jasprit Bumrah, the new-ball tandem, removed Phil Salt and Sunil Narine, KKR’s prolific opening pair. Shreyas Iyer, the captain of KKR, was also removed cheaply. To maintain a healthy run rate, Venkatesh Iyer, though, played a fluid 42-run knock off 21 balls. The Knights concluded with a score of 157/7 thanks to some nice knocks from players like Nitish Rana, Andre Russell, Rinku Singh, and Ramandeep Singh.

Also Read: IPL 2024 Playoff Qualifying Situations for Every Team Following KKR vs. MI, Match 60

KKR were the first team to earn a playoff spot with this victory. They will also receive two chances to go to the finals and a top-two finish is assured.