Kolkata: Ravichandran Ashwin once again found himself at the receiving end as KXIP suffered 28 runs defeat to KKR here at the Eden Gardens on Wednesday. Ashwin, who conceded 47 runs in four overs without a scalp, said his team lost the match because they didn't focus on small things.
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The ace spinner took the responsibility for the defeat. The main difference between the two sides was Andre Russell who slammed 17-ball 48 in the death overs to help KKR set a daunting target for KXIP.
The turning point of the match was when Mohammed Shami castled Russell batting on 3 off 5 balls, only to find the umpire calling it a no-ball as there were only three fielders inside the circle instead of the mandatory four. Since then, KKR made 56 runs in 19 balls.
"We weren't focused on small things. Small things cost you in this game. We need to be attentive to the small things for the next game. I take the blame on myself (talking about the no-ball)," said Ashwin.
After being given the reprieve Russell, who smacked an 18-ball 49 in the last match, then hit Shami for three back-to-back sixes and a four in the next over, taking KKR past the 200-mark, before getting out in the last over off Tye.
One of the key reasons behind KXIP's lacklustre bowling performance was Ashwin's captaincy who was not wise in using his bowlers.
Talking about his mistakes, Ashwin said, "I should have had a look at him (Varun Chakravarthy or Hardus Viljoen). He, of course, was a debutant and would do better from here on. The way Varun Chakravarthy bowled in the 15th over to Uthappa and Rana was a big positive."
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Meanwhile, Ashwin admitted that he thought 200 was par score at Eden Gardens and that is where his team lost the game.
"We also learnt coming over to KKR in terms of handling one small boundary on one side and a bigger one on the other side. Mayank batted well despite wickets going down. I thought about 200 was par for this track and that is where the smaller mistakes cost us. We played four games at Mohali and won all four over there. It is important to win games on the bounce," Ashwin said.
