The winning captain of the IPL 2016 deserves some words of praise for his exceptional batting and leadership. He has been Hyderabad’s key batsman for a long time now and the maturity he displayed with his game this season was a testament of how far he has come as a player.
In this year’s IPL, SRH's entire batting unit often found itself being carried by the Australian all by himself. His efforts didn’t go in vain as he was complemented well by his bowlers, who emerged as the best bowling attack in the tournament.
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We will leave writing the eulogies for the bowlers for a later day as we now focus on David Warner and his 5 best innings in this year’s IPL. These 5 innings created plenty of memories for the fans that don't fade away, quite like the Axe Signature range of body perfumes. Let's take a look:
#5 Match 18: 59 vs Kings XI Punjab
This was a match where two of Hyderabad’s best players collaborated to shoot their team to glory. While Mustafizur Rahman absolutely devastated Punjab’s batting line-up, ending up with figures of 2/9 in his 4 overs, it was David Warner who did the same with the bat.
Chasing 144 runs, the Australian didn’t want to play the waiting game as he went gung-ho from the very first ball itself. He scored a blazing 59 from just 31 balls to get his team over the fence with more than 2 overs remaining.
#4 Match 15: 74* vs Gujarat Lions
If one was asked to name the most one-sided affair in this year’s IPL, they would most probably name this encounter.
As a Bhuvneshwar Kumar-inspired bowling attack bundled Gujarat out for 135 runs. They had no answer to his trickery as he got 4 wickets in his 4 overs.
In response. David Warner did what he does best: smack from the word go. He didn’t wait up to cautiously play the innings and reach the target. Instead, he smacked his way to 48-ball 74 to give his team a 10-wicket win against the in-form Gujarat Lions.
#3 Match 27: 92 vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
He was out for blood and vengeance in this game for the humiliation the Royal Challengers Bangalore handed him in their earlier clash. And it showed from the very moment he stepped on the pitch.
He took the attack to the Bangalore bowlers and fully exploited the weakness of their bowling unit. He scored brilliant 92 from only 58 balls and it was a shame that he missed out on a century that he completely deserved.
His innings laid out the perfect platform for the middle order to launch a big score, and they did by getting Hyderabad to 194, which they defended comfortably on home ground.
#2 Final: 69 vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
The show was stolen by Ben Cutting for his brilliant all-round display—and rightfully so—but David Warner also played a very crucial knock that gave Cutting the platform to launch his fury in the first place.
His 38-ball 68 absolutely stunned the Bangalore bowlers as they knew not of what hit them. He hit 8 boundaries and flew the ball over the fence on 3 occasions.
This helped Hyderabad post a total of 208, which his bowlers defended. Among the fireworks and the celebrations, this innings might have lost its spark but the gravity of it can never fade away.
#1 Qualifier 2: 93* vs Gujarat Lions
And this was his best game in the IPL 2016. In this game, he showed what a captain should be like. He led from the front when the other batsmen faltered and left him stranded to do the job all by himself.
Chasing 162 was never an easy task, especially when wickets kept falling on the other end. Yet, he carried on and scored a mesmerising 93 not out in just 58 balls.
In the end, Bipul Sharma gave him the support he needed as Hyderabad completed a 4-wicket win. His innings was the sole reason why Hyderabad qualified for the final of the IPL in the first place before going on to win it.
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