Delhi Capitals head coach Ricky Ponting lamented the sloppy fielding by his team, especially after the first four overs, in the side's 50-run loss in their first match of IPL 2023 to Lucknow Super Giants.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
In the match, where Delhi had a forgettable time in the fielding department, Kyle Mayers was on 14 when Khaleel Ahmed dropped his catch at short third off Chetan Sakariya in the sixth over.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Mayers would go on to slam an explosive 38-ball 73 as Lucknow amassed 193\/6 in their first-ever home game.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"To be totally honest, I think they got more runs than they probably should have. I don't think we helped ourselves in the field. Our fielding after the first four overs was really sloppy. A couple of chances went down, a few misfields.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
One of those chances that went down was Mayers', who ended up going on a bit of a run after that, which put us behind the game a little bit. The thing with giving chances in the IPL is you're giving very good players a second opportunity. And he cashed in."<\/p>\r\n\r\n
For pretty much from that moment on, he hit everything in the middle. He attacked our spin, which he played really well. So that's just a good lesson for us. We know that we have to be really sharp in the field," said Ponting in the post-match press conference.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"You can't afford to put chances down, and if you do, you have to expect that they're going to make you pay. There are a few reasons why we lost the game, and we'll address those and hopefully improve for our next game," he added.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
On a pitch which looked tricky for strokeplay, Lucknow stunned everyone by hitting 16 sixes as compared to only five fours hit by the KL Rahul-led side. Barring Ahmed's 2\/30 in four overs, all Delhi bowlers had their economy rates above eight.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"I think we conceded 16 sixes in our bowling innings. That goes to show that we were a fair bit off with our execution with our bowling. Whenever you're giving up 16 sixes, and there's only five fours, which is quite remarkable." he said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"So, whenever you're giving up that many, it's going to be hard to drag yourself back into the game. Looking at the wicket, I didn't think it was a 190-plus wicket. There was a lot of dew there. If anything, on that wicket, it was probably better for us batting second," he added.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Ponting also conceded that his team had expected for some raw pace and menacing bouncers from tearaway pacer Mark Wood, whose 5\/14 broke the back of Delhi's run chase in the power-play, leading them to make only 143\/9 in 20 overs. <\/p>\r\n\r\n
"He bowled the way we thought he would bowl. We know he will run in and bowl fast; we know he will run in and attack the stumps and use his bouncer. That's what he did. He got those couple of bowleds and used his bouncer really well. He's a world-class fast bowler. As this tournament goes on, if he stays fit, you will see him bowl some really fast spells," the coach said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Delhi will next play their first home game of IPL 2023 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium against defending champions Gujarat Titans on Tuesday.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"He bowled the way we thought he would bowl. We know he will run in and bowl fast; we know he will run in and attack the stumps and use his bouncer. That's what he did. He got those couple of bowleds and used his bouncer really well. He's a world-class fast bowler. As this tournament goes on, if he stays fit, you will see him bowl some really fast spells," the coach said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n