Ravichandran Ashwin uses Murali Vijay’s example to put across his ‘big match player’ point

Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) received a humiliating defeat from Royal Challengers Bangalore on Monday (14th May). With the loss, their problems to get a spot in the playoffs are increased as they have slipped down the points table.

This is the first time in this season that they have slipped below the top 4 spots. Their net run rate is also affected badly after losing by a big margin. However, KXIP skipper Ravichandran Ashwin is confident of bouncing back in the next game.

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KXIP side has lost three games in a row now and hit the danger level mark.

Their middle order hasn’t contributed much throughout the tournament and it is a matter of worry now.

The team is highly depending on the openers to get runs on the boards. Their bowling department is also a matter of concern now as they have conceded 334 runs in just 28.1 overs.

Ashwin is concerned about the mental toughness of his side and how the big players aren’t really stepping up during crunch situations.

During the post-match presentation, Ashwin who used to play for CSK in the past season gave an example of Murali Vijay, saying that he was in the bad form throughout the season but played a match-winning knock at the big stage.

“The best thing is to forget the 12 games. I’ve been in a team like CSK where we used to do this all the time. We had batsmen who found the going tough throughout the tournament but went on to score a 90-odd in the final. That’s how it goes,” Ashwin said.

Ashwin though is positive about KXIP’s chances of making it to the playoffs.

“We have lost three on the bounce now, don’t think we can lose four on the bounce. The next match is in Mumbai which has plenty of bounce and generally the foreign batsmen enjoy playing in those conditions, so hopefully our foreign batsmen will also come good,” Ashwin added.