Nehra blames fielding for loss to KXIP

Mohali: Pune Warriors India's pacer Ashish Nehra has blamed it on the fielding lapses and not playing the full quota of 20 overs for his team's seven-wicket loss to Kings XI Punjab in their IPL match here at the PCA stadium on Thursday. "The kind of chances we got... [Robin] Uthappa missed one caught behind chance of Shaun Marsh, Jesse Ryder missed one run out and there was a drop chance off my bowling," Nehra said at a post-match press conference last night.

Pune were dismissed for a modest 115 in just 19 overs after Punjab won the toss and invited the visitors to bat. The hosts then returned to overhaul the target with 14 balls to spare.

Stating that losing opener Jesse Ryder (7) with the ball doing a bit early on did not help their cause, Nehra said: "The first half was a bit slow, with ball doing a bit, but we didn't even play [the] full 20 overs. Had we batted through and got 130-135 with the kind of bowling we have and supported with the fielding, things could have gone in our favour."

The Pune Warriors India pacer said his team paid for the missed opportunities.

Nehra also felt that given the conditions on the ground with a hint of movement, it was a bad toss to lose. "Bad toss to lose, I would say. The ball was doing a bit," he said. With the Warriors having won their first two games and losing one so far, Nehra said it was still early days. "T20 is that kind of a format; there will be ups and downs. I am sure in future we will learn from our mistakes."

Nehra, who remained wicketless from three overs he bowled on Thursday night giving away 22 runs, was satisfied with his performance after missing earlier games because of a muscle pull. "The muscle pull is okay now, and hopefully as the tournament progresses, I will keep bowling well," Nehra, who also missed the last edition of the IPL due to a hand surgery, said.

"[In the] Last year's IPL, I didn't play because of hand surgery. I am fine now and hopefully will have a good IPL [this season]."

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