Sunrisers Hyderabad captain David Warner did not mince on his words when expressing his disappointment at his team's "poor batting" against defending champions Mumbai Indians at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Saturday. SRH suffered their third-straight loss in IPL 2021, becoming the only team yet to register a point in the campaign and lose all their contest while batting second.
Sunrisers bowlers successfully restricted Mumbai to 150 for five before the opening pair in Jonny Bairstow and Warner cruised to a promising start with 57 runs in the PowerPlay. But following their departure, SRH crumbled under pressure during a chase, yet again, to eventually fall 13 runs short of the target.
A disappointed Warner rued the absence of a hitting option down the order and lack of partnership from the middle order after SRH's defeat.
"I don't know how to take that. Obviously disappointing. Two of us were set but it proves that if you don't bat deep, you can't win. That was my game-plan, a great piece of fielding from Hardik though. But that's the game of cricket. These are very much chaseable targets, if you get a partnership and if there is one person at the end, you can chase it down. The guys need to play smart cricket in the middle, the bowlers have been fantastic and this wicket was slower than the previous wickets that we have played. You gotta learn from mistakes and it's our responsibility at the top to bat deep. The bowlers adapted well. We have to move forward and keep having smiles on our faces," said Warner in the post-match presentation.
Warner also gave an update on Kane Williamson's injury and likely return to the playing XI.
"We have to speak to the physios, he's (Williamson) coming along nicely and plays a big role in our squad," added Warner.
