IPL 2021, SRH vs KKR: Virender Sehwag Reveals Why Manish Pandey Failed to Finish 188-Run Chase in Chennai

Sehwag believes that had he got the boundaries, SRH should have got over the line. 

Known for his ability to call a spade a spade, former India cricketer Virender Sehwag explained why Manish Pandey (61 off 41 balls) could not take SRH over the line in a 188-run chase against KKR in Chennai on Sunday. Sehwag reckoned the biggest drawback was that Manish Pandey could not find the boundaries in the death overs allowing the run rate to spike up. Sehwag believes that had he got the boundaries, SRH should have got over the line.

“Pandey couldn’t hit a boundary in the last three overs he batted against KKR. That lone six came off the last ball when the match was over. He had an important role play. He already had faced the pressure and was set. Had he taken the initiative to smash a few boundaries, SRH wouldn’t have lost the game by 10 runs,” Sehwag told Cricbuzz.

A six off the final delivery from Manish Pandey, but #SRH fall short by 10 runs.@KKRiders with a comprehensive win in their first game of #VIVOIPL 2021 season.

Scorecard – https://t.co/yqAwBPCpkb #SRHvKKR pic.twitter.com/qdynz3QL2b

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 11, 2021

Sehwag admitted that it happens sometimes that you do not get the balls you want and believes the same must have happened with Manish.

“It happens sometimes that you are a set batsman but you don’t get the balls to hit. I think the same thing had happened with Manish Pandey. He didn’t get any ball in his radar and hence, he couldn’t hit a six,” he added.

Earlier, opener Nitish Rana (80) and Rahul Tripathi (53) hit fluent half-centuries to script Kolkata Knight Riders’ comfortable 10-run win against Sunrisers Hyderabad. KKR has got their campaign off to a winning start and would like to hold on to the momentum going ahead.