Captain David Warner is turning back the clock, making technical changes reminiscent of 2009 on slowing pitches in the United Arab Emirtaes (UAE), as he tries to lead SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) into the Indian Premier League (IPL) playoffs.
Warner powered his way to 66 off 34 deliveries at a strike rate of 194.11 against Delhi Capitals (DC) on Tuesday night. The knock pushed DC on the backfoot as SRH powered home to a 88-run win. This followed a 20-ball 35 against Kings XI Punjab at a strike rate of 175 in the previous game.
“I went a little 2009 and opened my front leg to take it on. I took a bit of responsibility at the top of the order, and take it to the bowlers. It’s tough to play orthodox cricket in these conditions, so I have to open up 360 degrees.”David Warner, after the game against DC
Warner had until the previous game batted sedately by his standards as he tried to play the role of anchor in the SRH line-up. That strategy helped only if Jonny Bairstow or Manish Pandey succeeded to up the tempo.
While Warner had three scores in the 40s and a couple of half-centuries earlier in the season, his strike rate remained below 150, and once went even below 100, as he tried to play orthodox cricket to hold one end up.
The impact in the change was phenomenal as Warner's attacking mode unnerved Delhi Capitals' top-notch bowling attack led by Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje.
Even in the last match, Warner gave a rollicking start to the SRH innings only for his team's other batsmen, who were more circumspect, make a hash of it.
"We defended last game, and with two world-class bowlers in Nortje and Rabada we decided to go after it," added Warner.
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