David Warner’s strike rate becomes a concern for Delhi Capitals

To say that Delhi Capitals are off to a rocky start in IPL 2023 would be an understatement. The team has lost four matches so far from four games and sits at the bottom of the points table, but their biggest concern is the dipping strike rate of captain David Warner which has become symptomatic of all that is wrong with Delhi Capitals at the moment.

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With Rishabh Pant ruled out of the tournament due to a car crash he suffered in December last year, Warner was handed over the captaincy and the veteran, who won the IPL in 2016 with Sunrisers Hyderabad and is the overseas batter with the most runs (6090) in IPL history, was expected to lead the franchise from the front as they continue to look for their first title win in the cash-rich T20 league.

Warner in some respect has fulfilled his duties by scoring the runs. He has 209 runs already from four matches with three fifties, but not at the rate he would have wanted them to come at. Currently, his runs have come at a strike rate of 114.84, this is the second-worst for a season for Warner in IPL. His worst was in 2021 when he scored 195 runs in eight matches at a strike rate of 107.73. It was the same season when he left SRH for good.

While his form is not a concern the strike rate matters not only because it’s T20 cricket but also because it’s proving to be the difference between winning and losing. Winless so far, Delhi Capitals could have broken the streak against Mumbai Indians on Tuesday, but they fell short on the last ball of the match.

Chasing 173, MI got to the target on the final ball of the match, but imagine what if Warner would have got his runs quickly for DC in the first innings. He scored 51 but those runs came in 47 balls, at a strike rate of 108.51 and it was Axar Patel’s 54-run knock from 25 balls that helped DC get to the respectable total of 172 all-out.

Warner also got a fifty against Rajasthan Royals earlier. He scored 65 off 55 in a chase of 200 as his team lost by 57 runs.

Against Gujarat Titans, he made 37 off 32 as DC scored 162/8 before losing by six wickets.

In the opener against Lucknow Super Giants, he made 56 off 48 in a 194-run chase as DC lost by 50 runs.

The lack of runs from other batters has also led to Warner playing slowly. The next best run-getter after four matches for DC is No 7 Axar Patel with 108 runs. The third best is Rilee Rossouw with 44 runs from three matches.

Warner, being the captain, is taking the approach of playing the role of an anchor to help his team get to strong totals. But the move is backfiring.

“I feel it is time that we tell him in English now so that Warner listens to it and feels hurt. David, if you are listening, please play well. Score 50 in 25 balls. Learn from Jaiswal, he hit his fifty in 25 balls. If you cannot do that, do not come and play in the IPL,” Sehwag had said on Cricbuzz after the RR vs DC game, slamming Warner for his strike rate and approach.

“It would have been better for the team if David Warner got out for 30 runs, rather than making 55-60. Players like Rovman Powell and Ishan Porel could have come out much earlier and maybe could have done anything. No balls were left for those players, and they are big hitters in team,” he added.

Axar Patel after the defeat to Mumbai clarified that Warner has not been asked by the management to play the role of an anchor.

“No one has asked him (to anchor the innings). Even in the last couple of games, when he has been trying to hit, it’s not been coming off. As a batsman, I don’t know what he is thinking at that moment. When Prithvi is batting, he has to anchor but after that when wickets keep falling in front of him, it’s not good to keep attacking. Even when he is trying, it’s not coming off. Everyone spoke to him – Ricky (Ponting), (Shane) Watson, Dada (Sourav Ganguly). The conversation about his strike rate also came up. They looked at his videos and he’s working on it,” Axar said.

Axar’s comments only indicate that things are not exactly in control of Warner as far as his strike rate is concerned. Maybe it’s an issue of putting too much pressure on himself or not having clarity about his role. Something that we have seen with KL Rahul as well. As a captain of LSG, Rahul has often sacrificed his strike rate to accumulate runs.

The surprising thing here, however, is Warner is a more experienced campaigner than Rahul and has also captained many matches in the tournament. The approach to go big from the very start is what has always worked for him and despite the brittle batting lineup of DC, in the absence of Pant, it’s the approach that will once again work for him.

One can be very sure that DC coach Ricky Ponting and director of cricket Sourav Ganguly will soon be giving Warner the same advice. And DC fans would be eager to see the usual Warner back in the middle, setting the tone at the start.

This just wouldn’t help Warner but also Delhi who need a win now more than ever.

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