India vs New Zealand 2019: We Leaked Too Many Runs in the Middle Overs - Krunal Pandya

Indian National Cricket team all-rounder Krunal Pandya has admitted that they leaked too many runs in the middle overs which cost them the first T20I against New Zealand at Wellington. Meanwhile, the men in blues suffered their worst defeat as they lost the match by 80 runs to go 1-0 down in the three-match Test series.

An 86-run opening stand between Colin Munro and Tim Seifert within nine overs set the tone for a big score. Despite losing Munro at the other end, Seifert continued the onslaught to bring his maiden fifty in T20I cricket. Although he missed his hundred by 16 runs, some useful contributions from Ross Taylor and Scott Kuggeleijn helped the Kiwis post 219 runs. The Indian bowlers continue to leak runs despite taking wickets which hurt them badly feels Krunal Pandya. He also added that it was a daunting task no matter how the pitch behaved.

“In the Powerplay as well as in the middle overs also, we gave away plenty of runs,” Krunal said at the post-match media conference. “Yes, obviously I guess, when you are chasing 218 (220), it’s not that easy. Initially, we gave away (too many) runs and kept on leaking runs in the middle overs as well. So no matter how the pitch was, the scoreboard pressure was obviously there,” he added.

Dropping catch is a part and parcel

Indian National Cricket team were sloppy on the field as they missed catches including one by wicketkeeper MS Dhoni, when Man of the match Tim Seifert hadn’t scored much. Seifert went on to smash 84 off 43 balls with seven fours and six sixes. Dinesh Karthik also dropped a sitter in the deep.

“Dropping catches is a part and parcel of the game. One day you might take a blinder like Siraj and then another day two catches (Dhoni and Karthik) get dropped as well. It’s just that you have to learn from every game,” he said.

Speaking whether wind and cold conditions posed a problem while fielding, Krunal Pandya denied anything of that sort.

“No, not that much. It was fine. In fact, it was good weather to play. As far as the wind is concerned, it wasn’t difficult to catch the ball so I guess it was absolutely fine,” he concluded. 

The second of the three-match T20I series is on February 8 (Friday) at Auckland.