AHMEDABAD: Smarting under another defeat while defending a total at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday, Gujarat Titans director of cricket Vikram Solanki defended the hosts' bowling strategy against Rajasthan Royals, including giving pacer Mohit Sharma only two overs, and termed it as a 'line call'.
Sharma, who was the 'player of the match' against Punjab Kings, conceded only seven runs and the decision to not bowl him in the death overs came under scrutiny even as Alzarri Joseph and Rashid Khan had an off day. Titans' 177/7 was chased down by Royals with three wickets and four balls to spare.
"In the last four overs, if you think of how Shami bowled in his opening spell, Mohit was an option. In the last over, Noor Ahmed had seven runs to defend. It was probably important to try and take a wicket. Noor broke that partnership for us and got us back in the game," said Solanki at the postmatch press conference.
Solanki added, "I thought Noor was brilliant. I suppose that becomes a bit of a line call to try and see if he can take a wicket at that stage. I am sure that's what led to that decision. Any given decision after the event, you can, sort of question. Of course, you can. But I see your point. It's something that we can reflect upon."
The Titans had a non-productive powerplay, scoring 42 runs for the loss of two wickets in six overs. Despite a surge, a rut in the middle overs saw their scoring rate stagnate, and they ended at 177/7.
Asked if they lost the plot in the first innings, Solanki stated that to say that would be 'a step too far'. "I think losing the plot is probably exaggerating the phrase. Yes, we certainly could have been a little more proactive. A slightly more aggressive powerplay would have given that 10-15 runs more," the former England batter added.
