David Warner men gave an ample display of courage and conviction to secure an emphatic 10-wicket win over table toppers Mumbai Indians on Tuesday. (NEWS |POINTS TABLE | FIXTURES & RESULTS)
The win helped the side reach playoffs and knock Kolkata Knight Riders out of the race based on NRR. The win also pushed Royals Challengers Bangalore, SRH’s rival in the eliminator to the fourth place. SRH will now face RCB in the Eliminator of the Indian Premier League (IPL) on November 6 at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi. (HIGHLIGHTS)
"Feeling good now. After that dreadful loss against Kings XI Punjab. Obviously, they (MI) rested a couple of players, but to hold them to 150 on this ground is outstanding. (Shahbaz) Nadeem, to go for 18 in his four against a side with so many left-hand batsmen, is exceptional. There is great resilience in the side. We always out our best foot forward,” David Warner said after the match.
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Warner (85 not out in 57 balls) and Wriddhiman Saha (58 not out in 45 balls) shared an unbeaten 151-run opening stand. SRH chased down the target of 150-run target in 17.1 overs.
“I pride myself on giving the team a great start. That is my duty and responsibility. Fortunately, we haven't had to chase a big total. When you have your backs against the wall, you have nothing to lose. You just saw how much that dropped chance hurt Rashid, the passion with which we play,” Warner added.
Tuesday's result meant that SRH overtook RCB and KKR due to their superior net run rate (NRR). SRH, RCB and KKR are all level on 14 points, with the net run rate separating the three teams.
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On RCB and playing a knockout game Warner added that he hopes the team can carry the momentum forward.
“RCB are a very good side. They have a lot of dangerous players. We beat them in the2016 final. Another do-or-die game. Hopefully we can carry the momentum from this game,” Warner said.
Mumbai Indians (MI), meanwhile, will face Delhi Capitals in Qualifier 1 on November 5 at the Dubai International Stadium. The winners of the MI-DC match will qualify for the final which is set to take place on November 10 at the Dubai International Stadium.
The losers of Qualifier 1 will face the winners of the Eliminator between SRH and RCB on November 8 in Abu Dhabi. The second finalists will be the winners of Qualifier 2.
Meanwhile, Mumbai Indian skipper Rohit Sharma said his team will be going back to the drawing board.
"Not the day we want to remember. probably the worst performance of the season for us. We wanted to try a few things but unfortunately it didn't go our way. Losing wickets at the top doesn't help. We knew the dew was playing a big part, and we wanted to take the toss out of consideration. You want to leave tonight behind you as quickly as possible. We will get back to the drawing board tomorrow,” Sharma said.
On his fitness and hamstring injury Sharma said, “I am happy to be back on the park. Looking forward to a few more games here and see how it goes. The hamstring is absolutely fine.”
