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Guess Who’s Back: David Warner Slams 50 in SRH Practice Match

Back from his tampering-induced wilderness, the Aussie opener hit a 39-ball 65 in a practice game ahead of IPL 2019.

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The last 12 months have been among the lower points of his life, but David Warner is approaching highs again.

The Australian batsman, who is on the verge of completing his one-year ban for being involved in ball-tampering during the infamous Cape Town Test against South Africa in March 2018, returned to his IPL franchise – Sunrisers Hyderabad – ahead of the 12th edition of the Indian Premier League.

Warner, whose ban saw him miss the IPL last season, joined up with the team on Saturday, 16 March, and took little time to begin settling in.

Warner warmed up for the upcoming IPL 2019 with a blistering half-century in an intra-squad practice game in Hyderabad on Sunday, 17 March.

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The 32-year-old, who is hoping to make a return to the Australian fold in time for a comeback at the ICC World Cup in England, was the initiator of a run-fest that saw 425 runs scored in just 38.1 overs.

Opening the batting for Sunrisers-A, Warner looked in fine touch as he compiled a quickfire 65 off 38 balls in his team’s total of 212/2 in their alotted 20 overs.

Warner’s heroics, however, were overshadowed by the blazing bat of Yusuf Pathan in the second innings. 36-year-old Pathan rolled back the years with a blistering 30-ball 68, before an unbeaten 65 off just 29 balls from Ricky Bhui powered Sunrisers-B to their 213-run target with 11 balls to spare.

Warner, who led SRH to their sole IPL title in 2016, will be eager to replicate the touch he found on Sunday once the 2019 season kicks off.

The Aussie dasher is the highest run-scorer among overseas cricketers in IPL history, having amassed 4014 runs in 114 games from 2009 to 2017 – a whopping 848 of which came in the successful 2016 campaign.

Upon landing in India on Saturday, Warner expressed his gratitude to the franchise for sticking by him despite the tumultuous last year he endured. “Great to be back here in Hyderabad. I can’t thank the franchise and fans enough for your loyal support over the last 12 months,” he wrote in an Instagram post.

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