Morgan made the difference: Gambhir

Kolkata: Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Gautam Gambhir says Eoin Morgan`s 29-ball 47 was instrumental in their comfortable 48-run victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad in their IPL fixture here on Sunday.

"His knock made the difference... It enabled us some 20-odd more runs that took us to a comfort zone," Gambhir said giving credit to the left-hander who was promoted to No 4. "He`s a world class player. We wanted to give him more time so that he could play a natural game," he said about Morgan`s batting order where Manoj Tiwary usually bats. Gambhir also credited opener Manvinder Bisla who scored a 24-ball 28 to give them a positive start. "He took a lot of pressure off me. It gives you that extra time. I could take my time and play a longer innings," Gambhir, who top scored with 53, said. Having returned to winning ways after two successive away defeats Gambhir said, "It`s very satisfying. It was a very good team effort. Everyone batted well and the bowlers equally complemented. It`s always good for the bowlers to have something to bowl at. Defending 140-odd always, would have been difficult." "In a T20 game a dot ball is as good as a wicket. It just keeps adding to the pressure. They were 57 for no loss and suddenly they were in trouble at 127/7. So when you`re chasing a big total, a dot ball is like getting a wicket." Opted to bat, Kolkata Knight Riders posted a magnificent 180/4 in the stipulated 20 overs but Gambhir said the toss was not that crucial. "It was a fantastic wicket which got better under lights. We wanted to put runs first up. We wanted to go out there and play freely. It was not like a typical Kolkata wicket. It was as flat as Bangalore`s," he said. The Knight Riders played with a two-spin attack in Sachithra Senanayake who played his first match and Gambhir was all-praise for the Lankan offie. "He is a different bowler. Bowling with Narine is really a plus. Those are great signs for us. You can just play around them, rotate them," he said. Knight Riders have problems of plenty as quality players like Brendon McCullum is yet to play and Gambhir said, "It`s good for us; always nice to have problems like these." "My job is to go out there and win the game. I don`t think about individuals. I don`t think about the quality players and just try to get the best XI. We have got a quality in the dressing room. We are a side to look out for if we play to potential." Gambhir further said they were very good on the field with Yusuf Pathan and Manoj Tiwary taking two spectacular catches to dismiss Cameron White and Kumar Sangakkara respectively. "It`s great sign as a very good fielding unit. We have done brilliantly in the department. Those catches were outstanding. We have set very high standards." KKR will play their next match against Kings XI Punjab. PTI