NEW DELHI: Sunrisers Hyderabad's Abdul Samad believes the visitors could have defeated Punjab Kings by 15 runs if they had held onto the two catches in the last over.
In the last over, Ashutosh Sharma hit two sixes, and on both instances, fielders from SRH came close to catching the ball before it crossed the boundary.
Nitish Reddy palmed the ball over the rope the first time, while Samad did the same on the second occasion.
"We dropped two catches and they came close otherwise we would have won by 15 runs. Shashank and Ashutosh played really well in the final overs so it was a good contest," Samad said in the post-match press conference at Mullanpur.
Nitish was excellent throughout the entire game, even if he gave up a catch in the last over. After hitting an incredible 64 with the bat, he removed Jitesh Sharma from the game.
Even in the most recent game against SRH and CSK, Nitish scored a well-planned 14*. Samad disclosed how Nitish's play has changed over the previous two seasons.
"Last year Nitish played conventional shots this time he looks completely different. He has prepared well and he made a good impact in our practice matches. Everyone is impressed by him and that is why they back him," Samad said.
"I feel he was promoted because of the confidence that he gained in the last game. Everybody was confident that he would deliver," he added.
After losing three wickets in the powerplay, Nitish Reddy's half-century and some significant runs from Abdul Samad and Shahbaz Ahmed helped SRH to a total of more than 180.
PBKS lost wickets often during the 183 run chase, bringing them down to 114/6 in 15.3 overs. Ashutosh Sharma (33* in 15 balls, with three fours and two sixes) and Shashank Singh (46* in 25 balls) staged an incredible comeback that nearly saw Punjab win, but they lost by two runs.
(With ANI inputs)
