Punjab Kings defeated Mumbai Indians by nine wickets in match 17 of the 2021 Indian Premier League at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Friday.
PBKS captain K. L. Rahul lauded his players for coming out on top against the five-time IPL champion MI. However, he also asked them to stay grounded and perform on a consistent basis.
"We don't want get too ahead of ourselves, we're slowly coming together as a team. I said this after the first game as well, we're a young team. We add new names every year and we have to be patient," he told at the post-match interview.
"Deepak Hooda has been playing really well, Shahrukh Khan has taken his opportunities, and Ravi Bishnoi today. It was also good of Chris Gayle as he figured out who to target, that's the benefit of having someone like him," he added.
Rahul went on to reveal that leggie Bishnoi, who played his first game of the 2021 IPL against Mumbai after taking 12 wickets last season, has been training hard under the tutelage of Punjab head coach Anil Kumble.
"Ravi's been working real hard with Anil Bhai. There were a few things he had to correct, and he's worked really hard and he's held his composure against a solid batting lineup."
Meanwhile, MI skipper Rohit Sharma was frustrated with his team's second consecutive loss in the tournament. The defeat leaves Mumbai in fourth spot, a place above Punjab in the standings, having played a game more than all the other teams.
"Not enough runs. I still feel it's not a bad wicket to bat on. You can see how Kings won with nine wickets in hand. If you get 150-160, you're always in the game and that's something we have failed to do in the last two," Rohit said.
"We can look at it either way, their bowlers did well in the powerplay. Ishan Kishan was tyring to hit but couldn't get it, even myself. Ishan at three was just a tactical thing. We wanted someone to bat in the middle, who plays well against spin and we identified Suryakumar Yadav as that player. When it works it looks good, when it doesn't it looks bad," Rohit claimed.