“Polly has a reputation of winning games like this. Unfortunately he got out at a crucial moment.”

WWW, and alas, the run had to come to an end at some point, and today, at the hands of the Dubai Capitals, we faced our first defeat of the ILT20. Nevertheless, it was a stunning show of character by our batters to hunt down a massive total. And thanks to our skipper Polly’s 38-ball 86, we nearly pulled off the unthinkable. Here’s Nicholas Pooran, in the post-match press conference, sharing his thoughts on how the game went for us, and what the path ahead looks like. Excerpts .. 

Thoughts on where MI Emirates lost the game

I believe 222 was always going to be a challenging total. But we didn’t assess the conditions as far as we should have. Losing two wickets in the powerplay, we had 75 in ten overs. The guys played wonderfully, Polly (Pollard), Naji (Zadran). It was always going to be tough. But you don’t mind losing a game like this. It’s our first loss and we know that as a group that we disappointed ourselves with the ball in hand. Indisciplined, dropped catches, poor bowling, and paid the price for it. 

If playing back to back games hurt the team

We don’t want to use any excuses. We played with the right attitude and the right energy. But it is cricket and we are human beings, not robots. We made mistakes and paid the price for it. Joe Root and Powell played brilliantly and today was their day. We have to give them credit for that partnership. They batted their team into a strong position. 

On the dropped catches

Two really easy catches! We need to work on our catching we want to go further in this tournament. Catches win matches definitely and we just need to be consistent as a team. We can’t win every game, but if we can be consistent with the bat, ball and in the field, we can have a chance of being really successful in this tournament. 

On captain Pollard’s brilliant innings

Polly has a reputation of winning games like this. Today was no different. As you saw from last night, the belief is there. Last night was Najib’s night and Polly played a beautiful innings today. Unfortunately he got out at a crucial moment. But that’s okay, we are really happy that he was able to get some runs. He is stroking the ball beautifully and that’s what we want to see from all batsmen. If we want to go further in the tournament, it won’t be about individual success, but will be about the team’s success. At the moment everyone is contributing nicely. It is only our fourth game and I think we are going down the right road as a team and would look to continue this. 

Whether the team missed DJ Bravo

Bravo could have got some wickets. He might have bowled well or could have been expensive too. Again, it isn’t about the individual. Everyone needs to contribute and do what the team requires them to do. It’s fine, it’s okay. We will put this one behind us come Tuesday and try for the win as well.