IPL 2018: 5 players who captained IPL teams before their national sides

#5 David Warner

David Warner's captaincy experience at SRH in the IPL inspired him to lead Australia as their stand-in skipper

Much like McCullum, David Warner started out as an in-your-face, loud opponent who could take games away with the bat or in the field as if he owns the game. The Australian opener could have never been considered a leader, following his altercation at a bar with England’s Joe Root in Birmingham in 2013. Following his suspension from being selected in Ashes Tests that summer, Warner realized the importance of marrying his talent with the ideal attitude.

Warner had already become an IPL star during this period, but it was in 2015 when he was named the captain of Sunrisers Hyderabad. Like Steve Smith, Warner too had led a Big Bash team before an IPL one, yet this was at a bigger scale indeed.

The Sunrisers were perhaps impressed not only with Warner’s much-improved understanding of the game, but also a marked change in his behaviour due to off-field decisions of his such as getting married, having children and abstaining from alcohol.

The Aussie remarkably enjoyed the challenge of leading an IPL side almost immediately. Although the Sunrisers failed in 2015, they bounced back under Warner to win the title for the first time in 2016 and making it to the playoffs in 2017.

The insights Warner has gained from the IPL has coincided with him going on to establish himself as arguably the best opening batsman in all formats of the game today. Being the vice-captain for more than two years, the Aussie led the national team for the first time in the summer of 2016 in an ODI series against Sri Lanka, when Smith was rested. While he led the T20I team for the first time this year in the triangular series in Australia and New Zealand, with England participating in it. Australia won both the competitions.