Mentor of Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL, VVS Laxman is highly impressed with the consistency shown by David Warner in the 12th edition of IPL after returning from a one-year suspension. The southpaw is currently the highest run scorer in the tournament by a country mile. However, his record can be broken by other batters as Warner has already played his final game of the tournament.
David Warner has been in stunning form this season and has scored 692 runs in just 12 matches with 8 fifties and a century behind his name. The southpaw who was serving one year has been named in the 15 member preliminary Australian World Cup squad. Warner signed off the tournament with a brilliant 81 of 56 deliveries which helped SRH cruise to a comfortable 45 runs victory.
“He (Warner) has had a turbulent last year or so, made worse by an elbow injury, and we were a little apprehensive at the start of the season that he might be a bit rusty,” VVS Laxman wrote in his column for The Times of India on Wednesday. “But Davey was truly outstanding. When the schedule was out, we all knew that he would be available for 12 games.”
David Warner served a one year ban after being involved in a ball-tampering saga in Cape Town last year. The southpaw has been one of the most consistent players in the tournament and is leading the charts by a big margin. He will definitely look to make a mark for Australia when he comes out to play in the 2019 World Cup.
VVS Laxman called David Warner one of the most impactful players in the history of IPL cricket. “To fuse consistency with a high strike-rate speaks volumes of Davey’s skills. It’s no surprise that he is a true match-winner, and one of the most impactful players in IPL history,” he opined.
Meanwhile, VVS Laxman also revealed that David Warner had earlier texted Sunrisers Hyderabad head coach Tom Moody as he had promised him to score more than 500 runs in the season. He achieved the feat with utmost ease and left India with 692 runs under his belt. It has been the opening partnership between Warner and Jonny Bairstow which has been the main plus for SRH. However both the batters won’t be available from the next encounter.
“We were in the middle of a shoot in Hyderabad when Davey messaged head coach Tom Moody, promising us 500 runs for the season. It was no empty boast. It’s one thing to set goals, but the determined manner in which Davey chased it down was wonderful to watch,” Laxman wrote.
“He eventually signed off with 692 runs, one of the main reasons why we are in with a shot at the playoffs. Davey is fortunate that he has the tremendous mental resolve and, in his wife Candice, a very strong support system,” VVS Laxman further added.IPL