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Calcutta: Gautam Gambhir is counting on the positives despite losing the IPl-V opener against Delhi DareDevils at the Eden, on Thursday.
“I don’t think the rain played a part in our plans. It was still a close game. That we managed to reach 97 despite losing four wickets for 34 shows that we did well.
“There are lot positives to take from this defeat. The batting of Debabrata Das and Laxmi Ratan Shukla are a case in point. We hope to learn from the mistakes and move forward,” the Knight Riders captain said.
Gambhir didn’t want to blame the Eden wicket for the loss. “There has been always a lot of talk about the wicket. It’s always been a good wicket. Let’s accept that Delhi played really well. Chasing 97 in 12 overs was a good effort.”
He was all praise for Bengal’s Das, who played in the first edition of the IPL for KKR.
“The batting of Das was a positive. We knew he could deliver by seeing the way he was batting at the nets. He has the potential to deliver for KKR. Hopefully.. Shukla has been in good form this season. He proved that again today.”
Gambhir refused to accept that losing the toss was a factor. “The toss can never be a factor. That we managed to reach 97 despite the early setbacks showed that the wicket was good. We were always planning to reach 100 in the 12 overs.
“Delhi played some smart and quality cricket and we lost because of that,” he explained.
The omission of Shakib-al Hasan did raise a few eyebrows but the KKR captain felt the best XI had played on the day. “Merchant de Lange can make a difference. He will contribute as the tournament progresses. The best XI played today,” he said.
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