IPL 2017: After losing to Sunrisers Hyderabad, Parthiv Patel suggests such off days good for Mumbai Indians before playoffs

In match 48 of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2017, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) defeated Mumbai Indians (MI) by 7 wickets to inch closer to the playoffs. With 15 points, SRH are at the fourth spot whereas MI have already made it to the next round and are sitting pretty at the top. Despite the defeat, wicketkeeper-batsman Parthiv Patel remained confident of his side and believed such off days are good to have before the playoffs. Parthiv also stated that MI were short of few runs but were in with a chance had they taken couple of early wickets in their defence of 139. FULL CRICKET SCORECARD: Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) vs Mumbai Indians (MI), IPL 10 match 48

According to BCCI, Patel said, “It was never a 180-190 wicket. We assessed it and knew it was 160-165 wicket. We got 140 and took it to the almost second-last over. They tried to finish it early but couldn’t do it. This kind of day can happen. We have been playing very good cricket throughout the tournament. It’s good to have such days before the playoffs start.

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On being asked if MI wanted to test their batting order, Parthiv responded, “I don’t think we needed to test our batting unit. We batted brilliantly even in Delhi in last game on a difficult wicket. But on this wicket, if we could have got 160, we could have defended it. It was never about testing our batting. Almost every top order batsmen is near 300 runs, which shows we have batted well throughout the tournament.”

In T20s, the first six overs usually set the tone of the innings. Parthiv shared his thoughts on batting in the powerplay overs and stated, “First six overs are almost difficult to bat. But that’s how I have batted since last 10 years. I enjoy batting then. First six overs set up the game. Me and Lendl (Simmons) gel really well and we are one of the successful opening pairs, whether it was with (Jos) Buttler or now with Lendl. We enjoy hitting the ball but there is pressure. You have to make sure you hit boundaries, rotate the strike and not get out as well (smiles).”

Lastly, the 32-year-old summed up the match and was impressed with Hyderabad’s venue as well. “We thought if we get couple of early wickets, we were in the game. We knew they were batting thin but needed to get couple of early wickets. It’s a wonderful ground to have the final played. It depends on the day as well. One game they scored 200, one game went to 170. It is a good venue to play. There has never been a final here so I am sure Hyderabad guys will love to see a final here”, concluded Parthiv.