Warner fade-out marks IPL reality, big dip in career
NEW DELHI: The glitz and money in the Indian Premier League (IPL) is constantly highlighted, not so much when harsh reality hits icons in the league.
IPL does not have much time for symbolism, yet David Warner not even leaving his hotel room after bottom-placed Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) axed him and got a rare win felt like a heavyweight boxer, having taken too many punches, not leaving his corner for the 10th round.
Jason Roy eased into the vacant opener’s slot, hitting a match-winning 60. With skipper Kane Williamson joining in, SRH chased it down against Rajasthan Royals in Dubai on Monday. It was the latest case of an IPL team turning the page regardless of a player’s influence in past achievements.
A player of Glenn Mcgrath’s calibre found it tough to even get a game at Delhi Daredevils in the early days. Gautam Gambhir led Kolkata Knight Riders to two titles but returned to Delhi as skipper, stepping down even as player midway through 2018 IPL.
SRH are at the bottom of the points table and with four games left, Warner won’t play again this season. He confirmed that in a reply to a fan who urged the explosive Aussie batsman to make a strong comeback. Warner tweeted: “unfortunately won’t be again but keep supporting please.”
Warner’s omission though didn’t look surprising. He had lost captaincy to Williamson during the first phase in India, and then his spot in the playing 11. His struggle to focus and battle for form was evident in the last game he played—srh losing to Punjab Kings by five runs chasing a modest 126 in Sharjah.
Off the third ball facing Mohammed Shami, he nicked an angled delivery that the old Warner would have slashed past point . Fielding at cover, the usually sharp fielder had run backwards after an Aiden Markram mishit only to let the ball pop out of his hand.
Since his debut in 2009, Warner has missed only the 2018 season while was serving the Australia ban over the sandpaper scandal. He is the fifth highest IPL run-getter overall, and best among the foreign players. His strike-rate of 139.96 is the best among the top five. AB de Villiers, with a strike-rate of 152.24, is sixth with almost 400 runs fewer than Warner’s 5,449 runs, having played 29 games more than the Aussie’s 150.
Warner has an IPL record of 50 fifties. His four centuries are only behind IPL’S record six by Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli’s five. In 2016, he hit 841 runs at a strike rate of 151.42 to carry SRH to the title. Even in 2020 IPL, his 548 runs took SRH to the playoffs for the fifth edition in a row.
That 2020 performance though was followed by the groin injury in the second ODI against India at Sydney last November. Since then, it has been a struggle. In this edition, he has faced only 181 balls, scoring 195 runs—fewer than 23 balls per each of his eight games.
SRH coach Trevor Bayliss didn’t deny that Warner’s time with the team could end.
Warner’s poor form and current state of mind will only add to the concerns of Australia as the T20 World Cup follows IPL in the UAE. Since the groin injury, Warner, 34, he has only played Tests, being dismissed for 5, 13, 1 and 48 against India. The diminishing returns from their talisman could not have happened at a worst phase. Without him, Australia this year have lost T20 series in New Zealand (2-3), West Indies (1-4) and Bangladesh (1-4).