By Kristy Williams For Daily Mail Australia
05:59 16 Apr 2023, updated 05:59 16 Apr 2023
- Warner’s IPL woes have continued
- Out for 19 in Delhi’s loss on Saturday
- Under-fire for very slow strike-rate
David Warner‘s extended run of poor form continued on Saturday in the Indian Premier League (IPL), with the Delhi Capitals skipper again criticised for his slow batting in the side’s fifth consecutive loss.
He is one of the best batters of the last decade, that is without question, but like so many before him, has clearly declined over the past three years – and that has extended to the IPL this season.
The Capitals sit firmly rooted to the bottom of the ladder after losing to Royal Challengers Bangalore by 23 runs on Saturday night, with Warner holing out for 19 off 13 balls.
Wickets tumbled for Delhi yet again, with only a half-century from Manish Pandey allowing them to scrape to 9-151, well short of the 6-174 set by Virat Kohli‘s Royal Challengers.
It’s been a dismal season for Warner and the Ricky Ponting-coached Capitals, with the team winless from five games and the Aussie veteran a long way from the form that has seen him smash the third-most runs (6109) in history from 167 matches at the phenomenal strike-rate of 140.
In this occasion, he completely miscued a pull shot and holed out as the team sunk to 4-30, and Warner admitted after the game the team would need to ask itself the tough questions.
‘We have to have a hard look at ourselves and come back strong with five days off,’ he said.
‘Things aren’t working at the moment, but teams have come back from 0-5 so hopefully we can be that second team.
‘The positives were great, with our bowling and fielding exceptional. Our attitude and energy were amazing. But yet again it was just our batting.
‘We’re going to have to try to work out how we’re going to take on the powerplay and not lose early wickets, especially in the first two or three overs.’
While Warner is actually the second-highest scorer in the competition with 228 runs, his sluggish strike-rate of 116 well short of what is required from batters on the big bucks in this modern game.
Incredibly, he is yet to hit a six in 228 runs and 195 deliveries.
It’s clear the veteran opener is not the force he once was – with cricket legends and fans slamming his slow play at the top of the order for a team that is in complete disarray and desperately needing leadership.
The argument still does rage though in a chicken v egg type of scenario. Is David Warner’s sluggish strike-rate putting too much pressure on the fragile batting line-up…or is said line-up putting pressure on Warner and causing his slow rate?
It comes as teammates and legends confronted and questioned the veteran over his play.
After Warner made 51 at the snail-like pace off 47 balls against Mumbai on Tuesday – while Axar Patel made 54 off 25 at the other end – Delhi teammates had had enough.
‘Even in the last couple of games, when he has been trying to hit, it’s not been coming off,’ Patel said of his teammates slow strike-rate.
‘Everyone spoke to him … the conversation about his strike rate also came up. They looked at his videos and he’s working on it.’
Warner was clearly pretty frustrated too. He refused to celebrate his 50, then punched his bat in frustration as the anger seeped out.
It didn’t go unnoticed by legendary Indian fast bowler Irfan Pathan and the ‘voice of cricket’ on the subcontinent, Harsha Bogle.
‘How come no one (is) pointing out strike rate of David Warner?? He is (sic) been playing with low strike for quite sometime now,’ Pathan wrote on social media.
‘It isn’t easy watching the great David Warner struggle. He has been very honest about it but at the moment, it isn’t helping DC (Delhi Capitals) get the momentum they need. It was the brilliance of Axar today that got DC to 172,’ agreed Bhogle after the game.
An ex-teammate of Warner’s, Aussie fast bowling star Shaun Tait, said he could see the man nicknamed ‘Bull’ was at his wit’s end.
‘You can tell that he’s pretty frustrated,’ he told ESPNcricinfo’s T20 Time Out.
‘The only reason it’s acceptable is because the other guys around him are pretty poor as well.’
Warner and his Capitals will look to notch their first win of the season from their sixth attempt on Friday (AEST) when they take on the Kolkata Knight Riders.
