'Two run outs cost us,' says Chris Green on defeat against Hyderabad Kingsmen

KARACHI: Islamabad United's stand-in captain Chris Green asserted that the two run-out dismissals resulted in their six-wicket defeat at the hands of Hyderabad Kingsmen in the 21st match of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 11 here at the National Bank Stadium on Sunday.

Put into bat first, the United made a flamboyant start to their innings, courtesy of their top-order, comprising Sameer Minhas, Devon Conway and Mohammad Faiq.

The opening pair of Minhas and Conway put together a brisk 56-run partnership until the former was bowled by Mohammad Ali on the penultimate delivery of the batting powerplay.

Conway was then joined by Faiq in the middle, and the duo ensured retaining United's momentum by knitting a 31-run stand before both got run out in the 10th over.

Their back-to-back dismissals sparked a collapse, which saw United lose six more wickets for just 64 runs in the remaining 67 deliveries, and thus had to settle for a modest 153/9 despite Mark Chapman's gritty 42-run knock at the backend.

In turn, the Kingsmen made light work of the 154-run target as they chased it down for the loss of four wickets and 11 balls to spare, bringing an end to the United's winning streak.

Reflecting on his team's defeat, which came after three consecutive victories, Green credited the opposition for their all-round brilliance before terming the two run outs as the turning point, insisting the United played well in phases.

"Yeah, it was a disappointing result for us tonight. Credit to them; they played well. In phases of the game, we did really well," Green said at the post-match presentation.

"That starting powerplay with the bat was excellent, but ultimately, those two run outs cost us. It was a brilliant bit of fielding. We had two set batters there, and while Mark Chapman batted really well at the end, we weren't able to support his efforts," he added.

The all-rounder further claimed that the United were around 20 runs short and "missed a few marks" with the ball before expressing his hope for a turnaround when they next face winless RawalPindiz at the same venue on Thursday.

"I felt we were probably 15 to 20 runs short on that wicket. Then again, in phases with the ball, we were good, but we missed a few marks and they batted nicely," Green continued.

"It's not a bad thing to lose a game; you learn from it, and we have another opportunity in a few days to go out there and do our thing," he concluded.