'I never want your head down' - Sunil Gavaskar encourages Rishabh Pant after horrific outing against SRH

Delhi Capitals were outclassed by Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Saturday. DC invited SRH to bat first after winning the toss. SRH posted a mammoth 266-runs on board. Chasing the target, DC batters could not display resilience and succumbed to some tight lines and lengths from the Hyderabad bowlers. DC ended up scoring 199 runs.

DC captain, Rishabh Pant was dejected after the game. His emotions were palpable as he spoke at the post-match presentation. Sensing the tension in the air, Former India cricketer and legend Sunil Gavaskar jumped in to cheer up Pant. Gavaskar stated that he did not want the wicketkeeper-batter to be sad about the loss. He also said that the tournament is long and he can always make a comeback.

"I never want your head down, there are lots of games so keep a smile always," said Gavaskar. "I will try my best, sir," came a reply from Pant.

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"The only thought process behind the toss was the dew which didn't come. If we restricted them to 220-230, we still would have a chance. Powerplay was the difference. They got around 120-130 and we were just catching up throughout the match. That was the massive difference," Pant said after the match.

We had a pretty good chance with 220-230 to chase: Pant

DC were on song while chasing the daunting target. Prithvi Shaw started with four consecutive boundaries and Jake Fraser McGurk notched up the fastest fifty of Indian Premier League 2024. At one point, the current run rate of DC was higher than the required run rate. But after McGurk departed, things started falling apart for Delhi.

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"It stopped more in the 2nd innings than we anticipated. When you have such a big score to defend, it gives the bowlers confidence. We had a pretty good chance with 220-230 to chase. Hopefully we will come back better with a clear mindset. Jake Fraser-McGurk is batting phenomenal and coming nice for us. That's what you want. More about sticking together as a team at the hardest time. Its difficult pill to swallow but we need to look at areas to improve and come back for the next game," Pant added