It is often said that the presence of an energetic leader is enough to change the fortunes of a faltering side. This statement was proved absolutely correct by the effervescent David Warner in Kandy after the fifth ODI against Sri Lanka. Having already won the series, Australia were eager to win the series 4-1, in order to stamp their complete dominance over the hosts. Thanks to a fine century from David Warner in a considerably small run chase, the Australians got home with exactly 7 overs to spare.
It must be noted that Warner took over the captaincy of the side in the 2nd ODI when regular skipper Steve Smith was sent home after he asked for rest in order to prepare for a grueling home season. Fair to say, Warner as the skipper did a brilliant job.
Post the series victory, Warner lauded his side for a splendid performance. “Yeah, it is always good to get to a milestone,” Warner said. The credit goes to the bowlers. It was not an ideal start with the ball, but the boys came back to restrict them to 195. It is always going to be challenging here. Throughout the tournament we have had some fifty-run partnerships,” said Warner.
Praising middle order batsman George Bailey for his efforts, Warner said, “Well done to Bailey, he played brilliantly in the middle. It is always pleasing to win the series. Fortunately, we lost three tosses and came back to bowl really well. It’s always tough to call. At the end of the day, you have to come out and bowl as good as you can. It helps if you restrict the teams to below 200.”
Stand in Sri Lankan captain Dinesh Chandimal admitted that the series was a good learning curve for the youngsters. “We are really disappointed with the batting throughout the series. Especially today, we got the start, but could not get to 250-60. We did not click as a batting unit. We have experienced guys and have youngsters as well but they have to learn, if you get a good start, you have to bat longer. That makes things easy for others,” said Chandimal.