‘It's not back to the drawing board by any means’ – Hopes backs PBKS to hit back strong after Qualifier 1 debacle
PBKS were blown away for a meagre 101 in 14.1 overs after being invited to bat first by RCB in Qualifier 1 of IPL 2025.
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Punjab Kings’ bowling coach, James Hopes, expected his side’s batters to not overanalyse their performance against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Qualifier 1 of the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League. It was a forgettable outing for PBKS, who bundled out for 101 in 14.1 overs before losing the game by eight wickets and 60 deliveries to spare.
Hopes shed light on the importance of bouncing back quickly and not let the burden of the loss affect the team morale ahead of Qualifier 2.
"We played the first over okay with the bat and then it sort of just snowballed from there. It's necessary that we digest it and move on from it by the end of tonight because we have to travel tomorrow [Friday] and we've got to get up to play another game on Sunday and we're going to do it the hard way now. But I hope we meet RCB again on Tuesday night [in the final]," stated Hopes, as quoted by Cricbuzz.
The former Australian all-rounder was hopeful of PBKS making the most of their second crack at getting to the final.
"The worst thing our batters can do now is blink and start jumping at shadows and second-guessing themselves. To be honest, we didn't have a great night with the bat but we have a two-day turnaround now to play another final, to earn the right. We've worked for two-and-a-bit months to earn the right to have a second chance and we're going to cash that second chance in hopefully,” mentioned Hopes.
It's not back to the drawing board by any means: Hopes
Hopes touched upon how the Shreyas Iyer-led side would be ideally wanting to approach proceedings with the bat in Ahmedabad.
"Historically, it [Ahmedabad] is a very good pitch and we know we're going to have to go quite hard and score quite quickly. It's not back to the drawing board by any means. We've worked two and a half months to get into a position where we get a second opportunity and we're going to have to use that second opportunity now," he added.
IPL 2025: PBKS v RCB, Qualifier 1, highlights, top moments
After getting defeated in Qualifier 1, PBKS will have the opportunity of making amends by taking on the winner of the Eliminator at the Narendra Modi Cricket Stadium on Sunday, June 1. The Shreyas Iyer-led unit will be keen on ending their trophy drought after the stellar group-stage campaign they underwent.
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