David Warner would love to stay with Sunrisers Hyderabad next season, but he admits that it is unlikely to happen, after being benched for their last five games of IPL 2021. He insists, however, that his fans will have plenty to look forward to in the “long time I have left”.
Sunrisers removed Warner from the captaincy midway through the tournament, just before the India leg came to an end because of Covid-19. They replaced him with Kane Williamson, who had first taken over the captaincy in 2018 when Warner was serving a year-long ban for his role in the Newlands ball-tampering incident. During the second leg of IPL 2021 in the UAE, Warner featured in just two of the Sunrisers’ seven games, before being dropped from the playing eleven.
Warner talks about his Disappointment with the Staff
“Look, I’m not 100% sure,” Warner told a media house, when asked about what led to his sacking and eventual axing from the team. “With utmost respect for the owners, Trevor Bayliss, [VVS] Laxman, Tom Moody and Murali [Muthiah Muralidaran], when a decision gets made, it has to be unanimous. But you don’t know who is going for you, who wants you the selected, who doesn’t. End of the day you’re told you’re not playing.
“The disappointing thing for me was not being explained why I was dropped as captain. I think if you want to go along the lines of form, it’s a difficult one because I guess whatever you’ve done in the past would have some weightage moving forward, especially when you’ve played 100 [95] games for the franchise.
“I had four bad games, two run-outs in that, on slow and low wickets in Chennai. It’s difficult, a bitter pill to swallow but I don’t think I will ever get answers and must move on. It’s time to look forward, there’s another auction coming up. I’d love nothing more than to represent Sunrisers still, but the decision remains with the owners and what direction the franchise wants to go in.”
Warner Looking Forward to Captain Another Franchise in 2022
“[Captaincy] is definitely something I love doing,” he said. “It makes me play a lot better, also having had a taste of it in this [IPL] environment makes it easier as well. I shared that role at Sunrisers with Kane [Williamson] a fair bit, it was also great to have other leaders in and around the franchise.
“He [Williamson] was one guy I had a lot of chats with, Jason Holder is another guy. Rashid Khan as well, he has captained Afghanistan. These are guys with whom you can share knowledge and rebound information on and off. I would be thrilled to do that [captain a side] if it came up, it’s all about getting a solid foundation together.
“If it did arise, I’d love to do it. A person of my character can get people up and about. I’m energetic, I call a spade a spade, I would love every individual to perform at their best and hold everyone accountable to their actions.”
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