It’s not very often that a player from the losing team is the cynosure of all eyes. However, at the Feroz Shah Kotla, Chris Morris stood out with the bat and the ball even as the Delhi Daredevils lost to the Gujarat Lions by one run. After applying brakes to the visitors innings with the wickets of Brendon McCullum and Suresh Raina when they were coasting forward at the run rate of over ten runs an over, he returned to play a mystical knock that took the game to the opposition.

Coming to crease with DD tottering at 57 for four in 10.4 overs, he scored an unbeaten 82 off 32 balls and fought a lone hand to keep his team in the game. Morris’ blistering knock helped DD make a match of it until Dwayne Bravo and Praveen Kumar’s bowling in the death overs held the hosts to 171.

While speaking to iplt20.com after an all-round performance that won him the Man of the Match award, Morris reflected on the exciting game and talked about his explosive knock that held the spectators spell bound.

Excerpts:

Walk us through the last over. What did you tell Pawan Negi with 14 runs required off the last over?

I was hoping that Dwayne (Bravo) would miss one of the yorkers to be honest, he pretty much nailed them every time but I hoped he would miss one. He bowled really well in the last over. And I think the last two overs were good. The second last over by Praveen Kumar (with only four runs coming off it) was outstanding. They held on well. It was a brilliant show of death bowling. But, in saying that I was telling Pawan, to just take them down. Unfortunately it wasn’t our night, some of it at least.

Before that performance with the bat, you also claimed two quick wickets that brought DD back in the match - this when GL were cruising ahead and were 116 for one in 11.1 overs?

I think the wicket of (Brendon) McCullum was quite lucky. It was the first time I got the slower-one right. I usually bowl down leg or a wide full toss. Luckily I pulled off nicely today so got lucky there. But (Suresh) Raina was (a planned dismissal)..he is susceptible to the short-ball and we set that up. Zak (Zaheer Khan) is quite capable when it comes to planning and setting up a batsman - when we talk about batsmen and what fields to set. That’s Zak wicket, I pretty much do what he tells me to do and in that we got Raina.

To be able to pull the opposition back when they looked set for at least a 200-run total was quite an effort. What was the planning that helped pull it off?

One thing about our team is the language that we use, to stay in the game as long as possible. Take the game deep. A couple of wickets can slow down an inning very quickly which happened today as it had in Bengaluru (against Royal Challengers Bangalore) as well. We just try and stay in the game as long as possible. The guys are human and they do get tired; sometimes it works for us but sometimes it doesn’t. But we just try and stay in the game as long as we could, and it worked today.

What was the chat with JP Duminy and game plan during the chase?

It was obvious what we needed to do. I think we required 13 runs an over when I came in to bat. The plan was to (have a) go (at the bowlers). There was no holding back, there was no time for anything (to set a game up). If it was in your zone give it smack (was the plan). It was fortunately my turn today for (hitting), the ball came off the middle (of the bat) and I just went with it. On another day I could have nicked off the first ball and walked and it could have been Pawan’s (Negi) day.

The innings was precariously poised - you needed to keep your wickets intact as there was not much batting left. What was it like out there?
Cricket is a funny game and can change very quickly. A youngster like Rishabh Pant is very exciting, two meters on either side of the field and it is a completely different game (Praveen Kumar took a diving catch in the outfield for the wicket). It’s a small margin in a game of cricket. Yes, we had a little bit of a longer tail today but then Pawan Negi is powerhouse hitter and we still had him in the bank fortunately. But it wasn’t our turn today.

Had you singled out bowlers?

We targeted the shorter boundary more. At that stage every bowler had to go, it wasn’t about choosing a bowler and taking him down.

The missed chances, like Dwayne Smith getting away past Duminy in the slips in the first over, cost the team?

There were couple of chances we missed..including (Brendon) McCullum on the boundary (but) luckily he got out later. Cricket is a game of margins I keep saying. Unfortunately it is one of those days for us. We will pick ourselves up and come back and get back on again.

How do you rate this knock?

It is up there, it is one of my best moments in terms of batting. It was a special day today. It was lucky for me that it came off the middle today consistently for me. I am happy to be able to contribute to the team and get us close.