Abu Dhabi, November 9: Sunrisers Hyderabad batsman Kane Williamson said it's a shame his team didn't make the IPL 2020 finals, but added every player can be proud of their effort in the tournament after the defeat to Delhi Capitals in Qualifier 2 on Sunday (November 8).
Opting bat first, Delhi Capitals posted a total of 189/3 in the allotted 20 overs thanks to knocks by Shikhar Dhawan (78) and Shimron Hetmyer (42). In response, despite Williamson's 67-run knock, SRH could only manage 172/8 as Kagiso Rabada and Marcus Stoinis took four and three wickets respectively.
After DC reached their first ever IPL final, Sunrisers' Williamson admitted their opponents were the better side on the day as they found their rhythm and put on a good score in the first innings.
"Delhi is a very good side. They have been trying to find the rhythm to their play like we were and we managed to for a little period of time. Delhi was able to put it together against us and they played very well. They put a competitive score," Williamson said at the virtual post-match press conference.
Williamson also added his team didn't get a good start needed to chase down the huge total, but said they played well in the middle overs. However, he agreed that it was disappointing not to cross the line as he felt they had the opportunity to do so.
"Going in the second innings risks needed to be taken. We did not get off to good start but we managed to get good partnerships through the middle period. We still had a bit of opportunity. It's a shame not to make the finals but the guys can be proud of their effort," said Williamson.
Reflecting on the season as a whole, Williamson felt it was a very close and unpredictable season with every team beating everyone. But he was satisfied with SRH's performance at crunch times in the season.
"Season of fine lines. We had a number of close losses. Perhaps we were not playing our best, every team is very strong, everybody has beaten everybody, you need to be at the top of your game. As a team we were looking for that rhythm to our play. It was nice to find it at the crunch time, we would have loved to gone through," he added.