"We were 20 runs shy of good score": Faf du Plessis

After a gut-wrenching defeat in the IPL 2024 Eliminator, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) captain Faf du Plessis expressed that his team needed to push for more runs to make it a competitive total. However, he praised RCB for their resilience and fighting spirit against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the knockout match.

RCB's hopes of winning the elusive IPL trophy came to an end on Wednesday as they were knocked out of IPL 2024 after losing to RR in the Eliminator at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. In contrast, a brilliant all-round performance helped RR secure a four-wicket victory, sealing their place in Qualifier 2, where they will face Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in Chennai.

Du Plessis acknowledged that the dew factor left them a few runs short but credited his side for their effort. "With the dew coming, we felt we were short with the bat. Did think we were 20 runs shy of what was a good score. Credit to the boys - they fought really well. That's all you can ask for. If you look at naturally assessing the pitch and conditions, you would say it's a 180 pitch because it was swinging upfront and was quite slow," he said in the post-match presentation.

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The RCB skipper noted that with the Impact Player and the dew factor, what used to be a par score isn't sufficient anymore. "What we've found out this season, with the impact player, the par score isn't enough any more. Also with the dew coming in. Extremely proud. A lot of teams - their wheels would've fallen off after 1 from 9," he added.

Reflecting on RCB's season, du Plessis highlighted their remarkable turnaround after a difficult start. "When you win only one of your first eight games, the wheels would have fallen off for most teams. But we did well to win six on the trot," he stated. RCB's impressive six-match winning streak ultimately came to an end as they couldn't maintain the same momentum in the Eliminator.

Du Plessis expressed pride in his team's character and resilience, emphasizing the challenge of winning six consecutive games. "To come back like that, six games in a row, takes a lot of heart and character. We weren't special tonight in terms of pushing that extra 20 runs with the bat," he concluded.