Mumbai, May 1 (IANS): Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) head coach Sanjay Bangar would be mighty pleased with the return to form of their talismanic batter and former skipper Virat Kohli, but at the same time, he would have been disappointed with the way the Bengaluru team lost the thriller to Gujarat Titans by six wickets with only three balls remaining at the Brabourne Stadium.
The former India cricketer said as much when he attributed the loss to a "couple of (missed) chances". Kohli hit a patient 58, while Rajat Patidar slammed a 32-ball 52 as RCB, desperately trying to break their losing streak, amassed 170/6, only to see the total being overhauled in 19.3 overs thanks chiefly to the fireworks from David Miller (39 not out) and Rahul Tewatia (43 not out).
"It was such a close game because all three phases if you see, the game was fought for close margins," rued Bangar.
"A couple of chances actually didn't go our way. The way Wani's (Wanindu Hasaranga) ball missed (David) Miller's stump by millimetres or for that matter, even (Mohammed) Siraj's yorker or a LBW shout that was turned down against (Rahul) Tewatia. A couple of efforts in the field as well where we probably could have stopped a few more runs or could have scored 7-10 runs more. I think it's a game of small margins," lamented Bangar.
Bangar also acknowledged the fighting spirit of his wards. "Very well fought, very well contested game and we will take a lot of heart out of it and a lot of confidence out of it."
Bangar added that the game was a learning experience in the sense that it gave RCB the areas where it could make those minor improvements.
"We would look at the game holistically rather than thinking of departments. All three departments if you would see, we have certain areas to step up. How can we get 10 runs more? How can we stop 6 runs in the field? Or could we have done anything different from a bowling perspective? Those are the things that we would review and we will work to improve upon them in the next game," added Bangar.
RCB are currently fifth on the points table after 10 games, having won five games and lost the same number, while Gujarat Titans are on top with eight wins from nine games.