IPL 2023: I don’t think we batted well – Ajit Agarkar after Delhi Capital’s loss versus Gujarat Titans

Delhi Capitals assistant coach Ajit Agarkar admitted that they didn’t bat well after their six-wicket loss against Gujarat Titans at their home ground of Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi on Tuesday. After the home team was put into bat by Hardik Pandya, they could only manage 162 runs on the board.

The David Warner-led team failed to find any kind of impetus in their innings and the batters could not get going. Prithvi Shaw and Mitchell Marsh were dismissed cheaply by Mohammed Shami and it put the hosts on the back foot in the PowerPlay overs.

Shaw and Marsh had also failed to score against Lucknow Super Giants in their opening match of the season but Agarkar feels they failed collectively as a batting unit and he doesn’t want to point out one or two players. In fact, none of the DC batters could go past the 40-run mark on a difficult Kotla pitch, which had assistance for the fast bowlers.

DC assistant coach Ajit Agarkar said in the post-match press conference: “They’ve made runs in the past and, in general, I don’t think we batted well, so why point out one or two guys? None of our top order did well. Really no one got going. I mean, in both games we’ve not begun at the top as other teams have and you can see the difference. So there’s no point picking individuals.

“Collectively, we’ve not been good enough on both nights and you need we need to improve because you’re playing against some good teams. So lot of credit to Gujarat but, you know, we need to improve collectively as a group as a batting unit to get better results.

When asked about Prithvi Shaw’s struggles against pace, Ajit Agarkar said, “So when you’re talking about the Prithvi Shaw, who got a Test 100 on debut and so you’re not talking about someone who’s playing for the first time in the IPL. So when you lose, you don’t lose because of one person or two. As a collective effort, it’s not been good enough tonight.

Meanwhile, David Warner scored 56 runs off 48 balls in the opening game against LSG. Subsequently, Warner scored 37 runs from 32 balls before he chopped the ball back onto the stumps against GT. The DC skipper hasn’t been able to score at a brisk pace so far in the two innings.

Speaking on Warner, Agarkar said, “No, he got a 50 in the previous game. I think today was all right. I mean look like I said before I think collectively I don’t think there’s any different way to approach. He has probably been one of the best players ever in the IPL. So you expect him to get it right.”

DC will play their next match against Rajasthan Royals at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati on Saturday.