T20 World Cup Man of the tournament David Warner in an interview after the tournament has said that it was after he was stripped from his role as captain of the Sunrisers Hyderabad squad that he trained the hardest he ever has in his career, adding that he knew he would get a second chance. Fast forward a few weeks, and here he is second-highest run-getter in the tournament and man of the series for Australia in their victorious World Cup campaign.
One of the most successful players to have ever featured in the IPL, Warner captained the Sunrisers to their first title in 2016, leading from the front as he scored a mind-boggling 848 runs in the tournament. Warner also scored 500 runs in every season for eight consecutive years, before going through a rough patch in this year’s tournament.
Warner could only muster 195 runs in eight games for the Sunrisers, as he was sacked as captain, and dropped from the team, with Kane Williamson taking over as captain. Warner surprisingly featured in only two of SRH’s seven games in the UAE leg of the IPL.
“When you are dropped from the team you have loved the most for years without any real fault of yours and stripped of captaincy without being given a reason, it hurts. At the same time, there are no complaints. The fans in India have always been there for me, and it is for them that you play. We play to entertain. We play to push for excellence.”
Warner was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.
A lot was said in the media about Warner’s exclusion from the squad, with many speculating that the reasons behind dropping him might not have been of a cricketing nature. Many stories surfaces, suggesting a rift between Warner and the management, which might have led to his axing.
However, SRH’s director of cricket Tom Moody denied any such thing, saying that the team had many talented players and wanted to experiment with the team combination to figure out the best possible lineup.
“A lot of it [dropping Warner] was to do with the fact that Sunrisers got to a point where they could not qualify,” Moody said. “It was a case of ‘let’s have a look at Jason Roy and few other young players that are in the squad and give them the opportunity to see what they can prove so we, as a franchise, can look forward to what it looks like moving into 2022’.”
Moody remarked.
Warner, meanwhile, expressed his delight in being able to do well for his country and profusely thanked the Australian team management for sticking with him in his troubling times.
It also remains to be seen what will happen in regard to SRH’s retention policy for the 2022 edition of the IPL. All teams will have the opportunity of retaining up to four players, with the Right to Match cards being done away with.
Many teams will be keeping an eye out for Warner, should he be released by the Sunrisers, as a whole bunch of teams will be looking for a man of his stature, ability and expertise in leading their squads.
Warner confessed he was ‘happy’ and relieved to have done well, and said that the Australian squad peaked at the appropriate time to win their first-ever T20 World Cup.
”It is one of the happiest moments of my life. Before the tournament started, I had told you that we were ready. We had a very good team, and every member was determined to leave a mark. Thereafter, we peaked at the right time and once we peaked and everyone started doing their part, there was no looking back. We have an amazing bunch here and can’t tell you how happy everyone is.”
Warner added.
