CLT20: Decision to Field Was Right but we Didn't Bowl Well, Says Mohammad Hafeez

Lahore Lions skipper Mohammad Hafeez blamed his bowlers for his team's crushing 72-run defeat against Northern Knights in their second qualifying match of the Champions League Twenty20 here on Sunday.

"The decision of electing to field was right because the pitch was helping the seamers. We didn't bowl well. We as a team didn't bowl well, didn't field well and I think their partnership for fourth wicket (between DR Flynn and DJ Watling) took the game away from us," Hafeez said in the post-match press conference at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium.

"I think if we could have stopped the New Zealand side under 140-50 runs then it could have been a different game. In totality we didn't play smart cricket as when it comes to chasing we lost too many wickets. We played some bad shots. But I think that's T20. Some time you play good and some time bad cricket. Today we didn't play good cricket," he said.

Asked whether the team was under pressure to chase the target, he said, "The point is correct. The plan for the chase was not executed well. Unlike our bowlers, their bowlers Southee and Boult used the conditions well."

Hoping to make a comeback in their next match, he said: "No matter what's the condition we have to win the next match. Lets see how things go."