Mumbai Indians fought hard but lost to Rajasthan Royals by 4 wickets at the Wankhede Stadium on Saturday. The boys had set RR a target of 188, but a fast-paced 89 by Jos Buttler laid the foundation for a Rajasthan win. MI fought valiantly and took the game to the final over but in the end, Rajasthan won with three balls and four wickets to spare.

After the game, Ishan Kishan spoke to reporters at the post-match press conference. “It was a good score on the board. The wicket was easy to bat. They batted well, especially Jos Butler… credit to him and the way they finished. They got few lucky boundaries, but we all have to be on the same page right now. We have to keep believing that we can comeback. So, that’s the main process we have to follow,” he said.

Kishan went on to elaborate on where he thought we lost the game. “Obviously, in cricket some factors are dependent on luck. Rajasthan Royals got what they wanted but I think we played good cricket… We took too long to understand where we need to bowl on such a wicket. If we had understood earlier, it would have been easier for us. For the next game, we need to keep a game plan ready going into the game. We need to become more efficient in reading the wicket; if we are batting first, we need to read the wicket quicker. We need to execute the plan that has been set more efficiently,” the 20-year-old added.

When asked about the pressure of the closing stages as MI fought to stay in the game, Kishan said: “Pressure was obviously there. When they were batting, we were talking about that during the game… If we got 2-3 wickets, then the pressure would be on both teams. We came back in the game after (Sanju) Samson’s wicket. We took a couple of wickets and we stopped the runs.”

Kishan also praised Shreyas Gopal, who conceded just 21 in his four overs and later held his nerve to hit the winning runs for Rajasthan. “I think he bowled pretty well. The way he was bowling to Quinton (de Kock), he was bowling very well, his areas of pitching were great. We should have been able to predict how he was going to bowl and should have been prepared to counter him. He is a very good bowler and when it comes to batting, he was a top performer for his team when they won their last match. He is in form and he is able to help on both fronts, he is a true all-rounder.”