18 May,2015 08:41 AM IST | | PTI
Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Gautam Gambhir on Saturday night said his boys messed up the Indian Premier League encounter against Rajasthan Royals
Beaten: KKR skipper Gautam Gambhir walks back after being dismissed for one against Rajasthan Royals in an IPL-8 match at the Brabourne Stadium on Saturday
Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Gautam Gambhir on Saturday night said his boys messed up the Indian Premier League encounter against Rajasthan Royals.
Beaten: KKR skipper Gautam Gambhir walks back after being dismissed for one against Rajasthan Royals in an IPL-8 match at the Brabourne Stadium on Saturday. Pic/BCCI
"Obviously our destiny was in our hands, but we seem to have messed it up. Lot of credit to the Royals," said Gambhir after the nine-run defeat at the Brabourne Stadium.
The skipper said the 199/6 posted by the Royals would have been tough to overhaul on any wicket. He also praised man of the match Shane Watson, who struck an unbeaten 59 ball 104 for the Royals. In reply to the Royals' challenging score, the Kinghts could manage 190/9.
"199 would be tough on any wicket. Credit to Shane the way he batted. If a top order batsman bats through more, often than not they'd win," said Gambhir. "I thought 170-180 could have been an ideal total. We always knew it would be high-scoring."
Kolkata's failed to make it to the play-offs having finished the eight-team competition in fifth spot with 15 points from 14 matches.
Gambhir summed up the defending champions' IPL-8 campaign: "The points table shows that all sides are quality. It's one of the difficult leagues to play."
