Royal Challengers Bengaluru's batting coach and team mentor Dinesh Karthik praised the team's character and resilience following their first away fixture of the season against Rajasthan Royals, where the side went down by six wickets.
It was a special knock from Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Dhruv Jurel as RR chased down RCB's 201 run at the Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati. But despite the loss, Karthik downplayed the concerns.
"It's important to understand that in a tournament like the IPL, it's a marathon, you're not going to win every game. But if the team keeps showing character, keeps fighting, that's how you excel," said Karthik.
Karthik pointed out that the surface was not the easiest to bat on, making the team's total an impressive effort.
"I felt
the pitch was not that easy to bat on. It wasn't really coming on, and Dev's dismissal just showed that the pitch was sticking. In spite of all the challenges that we had, to get to the score that we did was a wonderful effort. "
Karthik reserved special praise for Rajat Patidar, highlighting both his shot-making and temperament.
"Rajat Patidar was special. It's great to see him play so well, not just in terms of shot-making but also understanding the situation of the game. The way he made sure he was there almost right till the end shows his character.We are very happy as a group to see how well he reacted to that tough situation. "
He also lauded the contributions of Impact Player, Venkatesh Iyer and Romario Shepherd.
"Venkatesh Iyer wasn't originally slotted in to bat, but he was told late that he might need to step in. For him to grab his opportunity with both hands and make an impact was wonderful. I'm sure he's going to have a bright season whenever he gets the opportunity. Shepherd also batted nicely. I'm sure he would have wanted more, but it was good to see him bat the way he did," he added.
Despite the defeat, RCB have made a strong start to this IPL season. They are placed 3rd in the table and will take on Mumbai Indians up next on Sunday (April 12).
