Smarting from the thumping eight-wicket defeat against Mumbai Indians, Kolkata Knight Riders coach John Buchanan said Shaun Pollock's devastating spell blunted the gameplan of the Sourav Ganguly-led squad.
"There was a gameplan but all credit should go to the Mumbai Indians. Pollock did exceptionally well and we could not recover after that," Buchanan said.
Pollock rattled the Knight Riders' top order, claiming three wickets in his four overs, as the visitors folded for 67 runs in 15.2 overs, the lowest total in the tournament so far.
Mumbai romped to a comprehensive eight-wicket victory, overhauling the target in just 5.3 overs.
Buchanan said he expected an exceptional show from Shoaib Akhtar but rued the total was too low to defend.
"We went out there looking for chances to win the game and tried to claim wickets and kept attacking but a score of 67 is difficult to defend," the former Australia coach said.
The team will now focus on the next game at Kolkata, against the Chennai Super Kings, and is hoping to play well against them on Sunday, Buchanan said.
The net run rate could also play an important role in the latter stages of the tournament, he said.
"There is no doubt and probably there will be three teams contesting for the fourth place and the net run rate is a factor that could come into play," Buchanan said.
