Aiden Markram rues missed opportunities

With 38 needed of 30, the game seemed well and truly in Sunrisers Hyderabad's pocket. But, Varun Chakaravarthy pulled a rabbit out of his hat to get the two points for Kolkata Knight Riders. 

Aiden Markram, the SRH skipper, was at loss for words. Sadly, not the first time he's felt that way at a post-match presentation this season. 

"It is difficult. Had to play good cricket in the last portion but we got it wrong. Klaasen batted beautifully. I struggled in the beginning and that was part of the reason we ended up short. The bowlers were good, we were throwing ourselves on the field. The batters also got starts. Tough one to take, we learn from this," Aiden Markram said.  

Having won only three off their nine games, they need to win each of their next five games to stay in contention for a playoffs' spot. It won't be easy, but Markram believes that adversities like these will bring the best of his team. 

"If we can’t execute, we need to go back in the nets and plan better. These guys have played at this venue so we know what to expect. Hopefully, the must-win situation brings out the best in us. Hopefully, we can go four out of four to give ourselves an outside chance," Markram added. 

KKR, on the other hand, will thank their stars for this win. After being asked to bat first, they lost three wickets in the powerplay before Nitish Rana and Rinku Singh began rebuilding the innings. Their handy knocks helped the Knight Riders to set a competitive target of 172. 

They started off well with the ball, picking four early wickets. Then, Aiden Markram and an in-form Heinrich Klaasen took charge and brought SRH close. Unfortunately, it wasn't close enough.

"In the middle we bowled a few lose overs and took a gamble with Shardul and Vaibhav, and they managed to get both set batters. That's how we made a comeback in this game. We had to get them out because if they batted till the end, then surely the game would have gone out of our reach," Nitish Rana said. 

Nitish threw the ball to Varun, with SRH needing 26 in three overs. He ended up conceding just eight runs in his two overs at the death. 

"I had a doubt if I had to go with spinner/pacer and backed my spinner to do the job. I always see who is the best spinner on the game and that's how I decide whom to back on the given day," Nitish added. 

SRH travel to Jaipur to play the Rajasthan Royals, while Kolkata head back home to take on the Punjab Kings.