MUMBAI: Royal Challengers Bangalore franchisee director Siddharth Mallya on Monday said the fact that the team topped the points table after being written off, shows its character.
"After our first win, we unfortunately lost our three next games. The commentary team wrote us off, the journalists wrote us off, the critics wrote us off. They said we had selected a wrong team. Where is (Rahul) Dravid? Where is (Robin) Uthappa? they asked," he told reporters during a promotional event.
"To bounce back from there, it shows the character of the team. We have created a new IPL record of winning seven games in a row and were unbeaten in eight consecutive games if we include the one washed away by rain. We are here on our merit. However, we still have a long way to go," he added.
The junior Mallya was also all praise for the orange cap holder Chris Gayle, who has score 511 runs in nine innings to single-handedly lead the Royal Challengers' revival.
"For Chris Gayle to have the orange cap is phenomenal. He has scored over 500 runs in some 11 (actually nine) innings. It is not something that we generally hear in our lifetime," he said.
Mallya said IPL without Lalit Modi was like a "sugarfree candyfloss" and his presence was being missed.
"Lalit Modi had a vision. He was a visionary. None of this would have been possible without his vision. IPL 4 without Modi is like a sugarless candyfloss. It looks the same, tastes the same but you know something is missing.
"It is not that much has changed. But yes we miss him," he said.
Mallya said though the IPL ratings had taken a hit this year, the fans were enjoying it nevertheless.
"After the World Cup, there was a fear that people would be sick of cricket. I don't see that to be a big issue. Personally, in Bangalore, most of the matches have been sold out. The World Cup win has been a big help.
"The official ratings have been low but we have to take the World Cup into account as well," said Mallya.
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