IPL 2020: Andrew McDonald Believes Rajasthan Royals Can Still Qualify For The Play-Offs

Rajasthan Royals suffered a demoralizing defeat at the hands of Sunrisers Hyderabad on Thursday as SRH chased down the target of 155 with eleven balls and eight wickets to spare. However, Head Coach of Rajasthan Royals, Andrew McDonald believes that his side still has the potential to make it through to the play-offs.

After their loss against Sunrisers, the Royals have slipped to the seventh position in the points table. They have acquired eight points in eleven matches. For qualifying to the playoff, Rajasthan not only have to win all their remaining matches but also depend on the result of other games.

Teams that have nothing to lose can be quite dangerous: Andrew McDonald

Coach  Andrew McDonald acknowledges the trembling situation of his team and said that they have to win all three remaining games and have an eye on the net run-rate as well.

He is positive about the potential his team carries and thinks that they are still a good enough side to finish in the top four. The Australian also said that teams with nothing much to lose are quite dangerous at the business end of the tournament.

During the post-match press conference, Andrew McDonald said,“The challenge ahead is pretty clear and that is to win three in a row and see where that net run-rate gets us. I still think that potential seven wins can get you through. For us, it is about continuing to prepare and continuing to believe that we are good enough.” 
“We have shown throughout the tournament that we can play cricket that can compete with the best and also, win against them. I think teams that have nothing to lose can be quite dangerous at the backend of the tournament. So, we will be looking to be one of those teams,” he added.

Defending a sub-par total of 155, the Royals got a strong start as their pace sensation Jofra Archer removed David Warner and Jonny Bairstow inside three over. However, with no support from the other end for Archer, Manish Pandey launched a counter-attack, and Vijay Shankar played second fiddle. Both batsmen got to their respective half-centuries to take SRH home safely.

Andrew McDonald praises both the SRH batters and gives them credit for their victory. He also laments on nobody from the Royals making a big contribution as Pandey and Shankar did. Ben Stokes, Steve Smith, Sanju Samson got off to good starts but couldn’t convert it into a bigger score.

“You have to give credit to the two batters, they played extremely well. I think we had enough pressure on them with those two early wickets. It was an extremely good partnership, so full credit to the two batsmen at the crease.

“If you look at the comparison between the two teams, it is that those two batsmen got fifty, we did not have anyone going past fifty. If you narrow it down to what went wrong in the batting innings, we did not have that solid contribution of a fifty-run score,” the coach said.

Rajasthan will be facing the defending champions, Mumbai Indians on Sunday in Abu Dhabi.

Also Read: ‘I Am Grateful That I Don’t Have To Face Jofra Archer:’ Virender Sehwag Lauds The Rajasthan Royals’ Pacer