Rising Pune Supergiants batsman Faf de Plessis said his side was 10 runs of setting up a challenging target in their Indian Premier League match against Gujarat Lions in Rajkot.
Aaron Finch and Brendon McCullum played destructive knocks to guide Gujarat Lions to a comfortable seven-wicket win over Rising Pune Supergiants in the battle of debutants on Thursday.
- Limited cricket doesn't affect Test performance: Jadeja
- IPL PHOTOS: Finch, McCullum help Gujarat Lions ease past Pune
"Possibly 10 more runs would have been great for us, but we could not score enough runs and lost wickets towards the end," Du Plessis said.
Chasing 164, Gujarat Lions rode on a powerful batting display to overwhelm the target with two overs to spare.
Du Plessis added, "We have some quality players who have the ability to score runs quickly but we could not do that as we wanted."
Du Plessis was the top scorer for his side making 69 off 43 balls.
He said that the wicket at SCA was not difficult to play spinners, but Gujarat Lions bowlers bowled well and did not allow them to play freely.
"They have bowlers who have the ability to take pace off the ball, they bowl good cutters and slower ones in right areas and their spinners too bowled well and made it difficult for us to hit fours and sixes in middle overs," he said.
Ravindra Jadeja and Pravin Tambe took two wickets each while the former conceded only 18 runs in his four overs.
He praised the Gujarat Lions spinners for bowling to a tight line and length.
"On this type of wicket you just land the bowl on a good spot and if you can do that the batsmen feel the pressure. Unfortunately, we couldn't do that for long period," Du Plessis said.
He termed the match a good learning experience for the team.
"What we learnt from this game is how to bowl on a wicket like this. We are a new team and will find out a good combination in bowling and batting department."
When asked about the brisk start in the first 10 overs before being pegged back, he said it was easier to bat initially.
"First 10 overs were a bit easier and then the wicket had gone slow and it was not easy for batsmen to attack bowlers.
"Both the teams batted well but only difference was that they knew the target and therefore played accordingly."
