Following his team’s loss against Royal Challengers Bangalore after being in the driver’s seat for most of the match, Sunrisers Hyderabad skipper David Warner said Wednesday the performance hurts and the loss is a “bitter pill to swallow.”

“A very bitter pill to swallow. Our bowlers were fantastic to restrict them. Maxwell batted well and set the platform. We needed two set batsmen at the end, but we failed to do that,” Warner said during the post-match presentation.

Put to bat first, RCB could only manage to fetch 149/8 on a slowish Chepauk wicket after some fine bowling display from Rashid Khan and Jason Holder. 

Coming out to chase, SRH lost Wriddhiman Saha early, however, Warner along with Manish Pandey built a formidable partnership to inch closer towards the target. But three quickfire wickets from Shahbaz Ahmed change the tone of the match. Finally, Hyderabad crumbled for 143/9 and lost by 6 runs. 

“We needed to build a partnership and play proper cricket shots. We played cross batted shots, and that’s not the way to play here. This hurts,” Warner added, talking about the misfiring middle-order.

Expressing his opinion about the pitch and how the game played out, the Aussie opener said, “We need minimum damage in the first six overs and play simple cricket. The team batting second (at Chepauk) should have won all the four games. This is exactly what happened last night.”

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Although dejected by the loss, Warner, who added 54 off 37, was hopeful about the wickets getting better ahead of the future games at Chepauk.

“We know how to approach in the upcoming games,” he added.

Sunrisers will play their next match against title-holders Mumbai Indians on April 17.