Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s best efforts were not enough to avert a loss on Friday. The Chennai Super Kings captain rued the dropped catches and missed opportunities at crucial junctures.

“We have to get a lot of things right. It’s the professionalism... We need to take our catches and not bowl no-balls. We have been a bit too relaxed at times,” Dhoni said.

“We’re making the same mistakes again. After the 16th over, we had two bad overs. Overall we could have been slightly better. Nobody wants to drop catches but at this level you have to draw a line that these catches have to be taken. Catches like these can really hamper your knockout stage games. What if this were a knockout game?”

For the first time since 2014, CSK have lost three matches in a row.

Dhoni admitted he wasn’t able to find his touch during his 47 not out off 36 balls. The captain, who said he had a dry throat, seemed to be troubled by dehydration towards the end of his innings.

“I was not able to middle a lot of balls. I was trying to hit it too hard. Normally, you would want to time it nicely. I tried to get as much timing as possible.

“But there are also plenty of positives from this game and we will try to come back better,” he said.

Man of the Match Priyam Garg, who scored 51 not out off 26 balls to give the Sunrisers Hyderabad innings some respectability, was overwhelmed with his effort. His 77-run partnership with Abhishek Sharma for the fifth wicket pulled them out of the rut after they were reduced to 69 for four in the 11th over.

“I felt very good in there, because it’s a big stage with senior players. I wasn’t thinking too much, just playing my natural game,” he said.“The best thing is the team management backed me after I failed in the first game. I’ve batted with Abhishek throughout my childhood so it was easy.”

David Warner was all praise for the youngsters in the side. “These guys assessed the conditions and played well, so I’m really proud of them,” the Sunrisers captain said. “I asked them what they thought was a good total, they said 150, we got 160-170.”

Warner also praised the young bowlers. “These guys really work hard... These are the rewards we are getting,” he said.