Kings XI Punjab skipper Adam Gilchrist on Saturday said his decision to bat second at the HPCA stadium led to their 82-run defeat at the hands of Deccan Chargers.
Batting first, Deccan Chargers scored a formidable 198 for two. Leg spinner Amit Mishra (4/7) took his second IPL hat-trick that saw Kings XI Punjab fold up for 116 in 19 overs.
The skipper also said the dismal fielding performance — dropping five catches — quashed their hopes of making it to the play-offs.
Talking to reporters after the match, Gilchrist said: "The toss decision was wrong. I got caught up in various factors like run rate, rain forecast and stuff. That combined with the worst fielding performance on the field didn't help on the bad day."
He added: "I don't think it was pressure; it just went all wrong. I didn't sense any tension in the group in the buildup. We can sit back and pleased about the way we came back. But it was disappointing."
"But I must say, we did not bowl and field well. In fact, we just did not turn up today (Saturday). A target of around 160 was a realistic one. But we were dismal on the field."
The former Australian wicket-keeper, however, said there were many positives from this game.
Gilchrist said: "There are plenty of positives to take away from this. It was a good fun to be part. Nice feeling in the group."
"Shaun and Valthaty were outstanding. We didn't bat well around them in the heart of the tournament. We batted well at the start and finished well but didn't do well in the middle."
Deccan's stand-in skipper Cameron White praised the team for the all-round good show.
He said: "It worked out pretty well. You can't ask more than 198 in Twenty20, Shikhar Dhawan and Ravi Teja played well. We did well today (Saturday); unfortunately we didn't do so well in some other games."
He added: "We have a very talented squad. We have two best spinners in the country. It's a promising sign for next season — IPL 5."