Pakistan wanted it more than us, says de Villiers

AUCKLAND: They call him superman and with due reason. But AB de Villiers was exposed to kryptonite by Pakistan’s fast bowlers as his team crumbled while chasing 232 in a rain-affected World Cup game here at Eden Park on Saturday.
The South African captain smashed 58-ball 76 but the rest of his players failed to live up to expectation as the Proteas suffered their second loss in the tournament.
“It’s a disappointing loss as once again we seem to not get enough partnerships in pressure situations,” he told reporters after the tense game.
“I felt that Pakistan wanted it more than us.
“There is nothing wrong with our batting as it’s just a matter of urgency and being prepared to fight it out. They bowled pretty well tonight. They were geared up and really wanted to win the game. You could see that from a mile away. I tried to get the boys going before the game. Didn’t feel like we had enough energy, and I guess that showed with the batting.”
De Villiers said that even though they performed with intensity, Pakistan’s bowling wasn’t extra-ordinary.
“There is nothing extraordinary about the attack. They just ran in with a lot of energy tonight and so you have to give credit to them. The captain got them going nicely. You could see a lot of intensity about what they’re doing out there.”
De Villiers lamented the fact that his team gave a below-par showing while chasing a modest total.
“I didn’t feel any electric vibe at the warm-up. That is normally a bit of alarm bell going off for me. And secondly, it is my responsibility to try to get the guys going, which I couldn’t, so maybe I should take responsibility for that. I just could feel that nothing was really happening at a hundred percent. It was almost like a car that’s stuck in second or third gear, and that’s not going to win you cricket games, especially not under pressure and in big tournaments like this. So we need to have a chat about what maybe went wrong tonight and try to get to fifth gear again against the UAE.”
De Villiers believed there was something in the Eden Park pitch but was quick to add that it didn’t affect the overall outcome of the match.
“There was something there, but it was definitely a good enough wicket to chase down even 300 tonight. So I won’t blame the pitch though after a bit of downpour, I think there was a bit of juice in there, and the ball moved around a bit. I thought there were a couple wickets that they had to actually work for. But too many soft dismissals,” he said.
De Villiers gave a solid showing in the match but made it clear that he was disappointed as his failure to finish off the game.
“I hate losing. I really do. So I have nothing good to say about the team at the moment. I’m very disappointed. Even though I scored some runs, I’m disappointed in my own performance. I should have finished it off. I’ve done it before so many times. Just couldn’t cross the line tonight. Hopefully, we’ve got four games left in this World Cup, and still an opportunity to lift the trophy.”
He said that Pakistan’s pacers sizzled as a unit during the explosive encounter.
“They all played a role tonight in getting a couple wickets and none of them went for a lot of runs. I think they bowled well as a group of players. I’ve played a lot against with Irfan and Riaz before, not as much against Ali. They’re all really good seamers.”