Despite poor results, Kevin Pietersen happy with team's combative approach

NEW DELHI: In spite of his side's string of losses, Delhi Daredevils captain Kevin Pietersen defended his players on Tuesday and said the team was playing the way they were expected to.
"We are doing a fantastic job. We are playing exactly the way we are supposed to be playing. We are getting the runs, batting beautifully," Pietersen said on the sidelines of a promotional event here at a city hotel.Pietersen said Delhi could take pride from the way they played against Chennai Super Kings on Monday.
"It is very easy to criticize. We go to each game picking the team that we think can win. Every team we have picked so far has been the right team. We have used everybody the way we want them to use. When we lose a game like the one we lost last night, I think we can be incredibly happy with the way the boys played. They were absolutely fantastic. They fought for every single delivery.
"CSK is a fantastic team which has brilliant players. To take them so close is a big thing. If we play cricket like that for the next two weeks, we are going to win more than we lose. A little bit of luck will help. It is a very young side," he said.
Asked about his finger injury, he said, "The bones have not set correctly but there is no pain anymore and it is absolutely fine."
Pietersen said blaming the bowlers for poor performance was wrong. "It is very easy to say bowling is an issue. It is a really tough job for the bowlers. Chennai bowled incredibly well. Kedhar Jadhav and JP Duminy played exceptionally well. It's a hard job. We are in no position to point fingers at anybody in our team. We are there to support and help them."
Coach Gary Kirsten too supported the bowlers, saying: "It is very tough at the death. Almost every bowling attack has gone for runs. It is not an easy task. We have got some young bowlers. We are very excited about the squad that we have put together but it is going to take them some time to get used to bowling in those pressure moments."
Kirsten said he was enjoying his stint as the coach. "I enjoyed tremendously with the Indian team and currently I am enjoying my stint with the Delhi daredevils and enjoying IPL. It is a fantastic tournament. Every game is a pressure game and every game is an exciting game. I have really enjoyed it so far!" he said.