David Warner-Virat Kohli: How IPL is forging friendship between SRH and RCB skippers - Hindustan Times
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David Warner-Virat Kohli: How IPL is forging friendship between SRH and RCB skippers

Hindustan Times, Mumbai | By
May 11, 2017 08:12 PM IST

Sunrisers skipper David Warner led from the front with a brutal 126 off 59 balls as Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) beat Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by 48 runs to consolidate third spot in the 2017 Indian Premier League encounter on Sunday.

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) skipper David Warner thanked India and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Virat Kohli for congratulating him after he struck a fine century against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Sunday, stating that the tournament is a fantastic platform to build bridges between international cricketers. Match Highlights | Scorecard

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) captain David Warner (R) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Virat Kohli during the opening ceremony of the 2017 Indian Premier League (IPL) in Hyderabad on April 5.(AFP)
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) captain David Warner (R) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Virat Kohli during the opening ceremony of the 2017 Indian Premier League (IPL) in Hyderabad on April 5.(AFP)

“It’s always great to get that credit. Us as international cricketers, we galvanise in this tournament. You know there’s international cricket and there are boundaries that you try not to cross but when we come together in the IPL and step on the field; it’s competitive and for that we respect each individual,” Warner told former India batsman VVS Laxman in an interactive session after Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Kolkata Knight Riders match for iplt20.com.

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“When someone does well, it’s not hard to send a congratulatory message. We always credit each other because what it’s about is entertaining the crowd and the fans and helping them keep watch the great game of ours,” added Warner.

The Australian vice-captain scored a terrific 59-ball 126 to help SRH set a target of 210 for Kolkata Knight Riders. This wasn’t just their highest score in the IPL, it was also the most put up by any side against the former champions. Backed by a quality spin attack in the form of Sunil Narine and Kuldeep Yadav in their ranks, Kolkata Knight Riders have been one of the better performing sides in this edition of the IPL.

“When you have quality spin bowling, you’ve got to have a gameplan,” said Warner. “I try and take those risks and back my strengths and the reverse sweep’s one of my strengths and I thought to have a clear plan to play it when I did and then tried to coming down the wicket and put more pressure on him. So, I tried to make him bowl faster into the wicket, some of those balls did, some did not but that’s the gameplan you need to have… You’ve got to think on your feet when you’ve world-class bowlers.”

The ton also helped Warner consolidate his position on top of the pile in the list of highest run-getters in this edition of the IPL. He has already aggregated 459 runs at a staggering average of 65.57.

“It always feels great to when you’re out there in the middle and you can put the balls away,” said Warner. “You need a bit of luck as well but I felt great tonight, I’ve always felt great throughout the tournament but I must acknowledge the role Shikhar played, I played that role in the last game and Kane just manages to get 40 or 50 of not many… It really sums it up for us.”

He also lauded the bowling attack of his side stating that it wouldn’t be possible for them to win matches if his bowlers failed to defend the total. Known as a side that has the ability to chase down any totals, KKR were going strong last night as well with Uthappa and Manish Pandey out in the middle but lost the plot once they departed.

“I think Siraj is learning on the go and that’s fantastic and something we expect as a Sunrisers unit. We are not harsh critics and we allow the guys to have chances and the way he’s come out and taken those chances is fantastic. It’s great to have Bhuvi there always talking to him,” Warner added. “To have a senior like Bhuvi, it’s an immense gratitude towards the younger bowlers… Still early days in the tournament for me but I’m very proud of what they have been doing.”

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