Dale Steyn made a big difference on the day: Virat Kohli

After losing to Deccan Chargers, a distraught Virat Kohli had only his team to blame for the debacle while adding that Dale Steyn made a big difference on the day. “He really bowled well. We had to see off Steyn and then target the other bowlers. I don’t think we played the right kind of shots on this wicket. We had to step up the run rate a bit, so I had to take chances. But in the end my wicket changed the whole face of the match. We were poised at that stage, needing 30 off 25 balls but we failed to get home. Today we made a lot of mistakes and we need to learn from it,” he said, according to The Times Of India report.

“Gayle is always a big player for us. But other players are also always ready to step in. But unfortunately it could not happen today. It was bad play from us. He has been with us for the last two years and the others always stepped up and contributed when he failed. Unfortunately we could not do it today. We should have read the wicket better,” Kohli added.

According to a report in The Indian Express, former Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist has said his participation in a Kings XI Punjab versus Delhi Daredevils game at Dharamsala on Saturday was his final cricket match as a player, but added he was keen to carry on with his coaching duties.

I would say I've played my last game of cricket just there,” The Sydney Morning Herald quoted Kings XI Punjab’s captain and coach Gilchrist, as saying.

“I'll go away and have a think about it and talk to the franchise. If the franchise is still keen to keep me involved as coach, which is a role I've really enjoyed, I find that I still enjoy being around the group. To be honest I didn't miss the cricket that much,” he added.

Meanwhile former cricketer and MP Kirti Azad on Sunday sat on a hunger strike to protest the way the IPL is being managed, following a series of controversies that have hit the tournament. “I’m not against the IPL, but the way it is run. There is no transparency, accountability or discipline. Why doesn’t all this indiscipline happen in Test, one-day or domestic cricket matches,” he asked, according to a HT report.