IPL 2019 | RCB does not deserve four consecutive defeats, feels Parthiv Patel

The Royal Challengers Bangalore are placed at the bottom of the table and have failed to register a single win in the four matches they’ve played until now. The team has looked completely out of sorts in all the three departments and the manner of their defeats has caught the ire of many fans.

They were wrapped up for 70 in their infamous first encounter against Chennai Super Kings. They had another low-scoring innings against Sunrisers Hyderabad where they were all out for 113 runs after being completely smashed for a record 231 runs. They dropped three catches and fielded poorly in the match against Rajasthan Royals. One match where they looked a little better was the one against Mumbai Indians but unfortunately, lost that too, by a margin of six runs.

In spite of all this, batsman Parthiv Patel was of the opinion that the team did not deserve four losses and was still positive of a better performance in the future games.

"We can't shy away from saying that we are under the pump, that's definitely the case, there is no doubt about it. However, we are quite positive about the team. The kind of team we have, we don't deserve to have lost four games in a row," Parthiv said, on the eve of his team’s encounter against Kolkata Knight Riders, reported PTI.

In their previous game against Rajasthan Royals, the Bengaluru based franchise’s ace batsmen were bamboozled by leggie Shreyas Gopal and Parthiv’s 67 off 41 was their lone shining spot with the bat. The bowlers, barring Mohammed Siraj and Yuzvendra Chahal, were all taken to the cleaners. Add to that, RCB’s sloppy fielding performance where they dropped three chances. Still, the Royals floundered to take the match until the second last ball.

"Even if you look at last game, we didn't field well, bat well or bowl well and still the game went almost to the last ball," the 34-year-old added.

The skipper requires another 17 runs to complete 8,000 runs in T20s whereas De Villiers, with 3,406 runs, is 15 runs shy of crossing Chris Gayle and becoming the second highest run-scorer for RCB. But this season, the two stalwarts have been underwhelming. Kohli has looked completely out of sorts barring one innings of 46. On the other hand, the former South Africa captain has looked uncomfortable in all his innings until now even in the one where he scored 70 runs, he failed to consistently middle the ball. But Parthiv was quick to point out that personal milestones do not matter to them and they will be looking to get a win.

"I think more than anything, Virat and AB will try and score big. AB had a good game against Mumbai here and Virat got a 40 as well in the same game. They set very high standards and that is the reason why they are talked about," expressed the Gujarat player.

"Personally knowing Virat and AB, milestones do not matter to them. Many players including the captain, focus on winning matches rather than reaching their milestones."

Over the course of years in the cash-rich league, Parthiv has been a part of as many as six franchises, and naturally, has opened with numerous partners. But he dismissed arguments stating that these factors have a bearing on his game.

"Personally, I have played for so many teams and played with so many openers, it doesn't matter that much to me. I have played a lot with Virat and Moeen together. I know what my role is and it doesn't worry me too much. Everyone knows their role. It's not like suddenly we decide that someone is opening," he said.

"I am happy with my performance, but individual performances do not matter as much. Every time I get an opportunity to play, I try to perform to the best of my ability."