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New South Wales captain Simon Katich said a couple of dropped catches cost his side the Champions League Twenty20 semifinal against Royal Challengers Bangalore, in Bangalore.
Katich said, if not for Virat Kohli and Chris Gayle, his side could have won the match. Chasing an imposing 203 for two, Gayle struck a whirlwind 92, while Kohli played an unbeaten 84-run knock to power RCB to a six-wicket win over NSW, on Friday night.
"Virat was brilliant, Gayle was awesome. We tried different lengths, different paces, it was a big learning experience for the young bowlers, probably a couple of dropped catches cost us today. Earlier on the ball was holding up a bit," a disappointed Katich said after crashing out of the tournament.
His counterpart Daniel Vettori was of the view that 200 was a gettable target on the batting-friendly wicket.
"It is tough for the bowlers but it must be amazing to watch. 200 is a par score here. It was tough to be belted over the park but we managed to get home tonight.
He also lauded Gayle and Kohli for their stupendous efforts.
"They (Gayle and Kohli) are confident enough to back their games but you have still to play exceptionally well. It is pure batsmanship and its enthralling to watch. Some of the bowlers will look forward to not playing here," Vettori said.
Man-of-the-match Kohli said he was content playing the waiting game as long as Gayle was at the crease and did not go for the big hits from the word go.
"I said it happens once in a while, but we have done it again. I went in with a mindset to play myself in, I was not desperate to score but I got the right cricket shots," he said.
"Chris (Gayle) has the ability to give a 25-run over. I decided to play two dot balls," he added.