After Loss to DC, Smith Comments on Defeat & Stokes’ Availability

Here’s what Steve Smith said about the possibility of Ben Stokes playing the next match for Rajasthan Royals.

(Photo: BCCI/IPL)

Rajasthan Royals (RR) on Friday succumbed to their fourth consecutive defeat with a 46-run loss to the dominant Delhi Capitals (DC) in Sharjah.

After the match, Rajasthan captain Steve Smith said that while the bowlers did a good job to restrict DC to 184/8, which is the first time a team scored less than 200 batting first in Sharjah in this IPL, the team is underperforming in pressure situations.

“We are not playing good enough over the 40 overs, and not executing when the pressure is coming on and you can’t win many games that way,” Smith said.

"The bowlers did a good job, and I don't think the wicket was as good as it has been here, a bit sloppy tonight, and we gave away 10-15 extra runs. We have to remain positive, and turn things around quickly," he added.

The run of defeats has also coincided with a downturn in form for Smith and Sanju Samson. On Friday, Smith scored 24, which was the first time in four games that he crossed over into double digits. Samson, meanwhile, scored 5, which follows up on scores of 8, 4 and 0 in the last three matches.

"At the moment it doesn't seem to be going our way. I'm not batting too well either. I did feel good tonight with the bat but didn't get hold of one that I feel I should have," he said.

All-rounder Ben Stokes joins the team after completing his mandatory quarantine on Saturday. "Stokes hasn't had a lot of practice, he gets out of quarantine tomorrow, so we'll see if he plays the day after tomorrow," said Smith.