3 best IPL innings by David Warner in Delhi

Following a loss to start off their campaign, Delhi Capitals (DC) will look to bounce back when they lock horns with the Gujarat Titans (GT) in their second game of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023. The match will be played at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Tuesday, April 4.

Courtesy of a fiery spell by Mark Wood (5/14), the Delhi batters were rattled in their run-chase of 194 against Lucknow and lost the encounter by 50 runs. However, one man, David Warner, stood tall and worked his way through the innings to score a half-century in the game.

Warner will look to build on his performance and perhaps play with more freedom in front of his home supporters on Tuesday.

Yes, we’ve kept count of the days before we came back to our fans 🥹💙

We’re home, at our #QilaKotla 🏟️

#YehHaiNayiDilli #IPL2023 #DCvGT https://t.co/OrutqEBfjD

The IPL legend, who has mustered almost 6,000 runs in the tournament, also boasts a terrific record at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. During his first stint with the Delhi franchise, Warner played at the venue quite a lot and even came up with several clutch knocks.

In total, the 36-year-old has so far played 28 IPL fixtures in Delhi, accumulating 740 runs at an average of 30.8 and at a strike rate of 124. This includes five fifties and a century as well.

Ahead of DC's first home game this season, let's take a look at David Warner's three best knocks in Delhi in his IPL career.

#3 77 off 48 vs Kings XI Punjab in IPL 2011

David Warner (L) and Virender Sehwag enjoying a century partnership [IPLT20]

In what was a sheer domination on display, the duo of David Warner and Virender Sehwag decimated the opposition bowlers and provided an entertaining evening for the fans in Delhi in 2011.

Batting for the Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals), Warner and Sehwag added a fantastic opening partnership of 146 runs within 12 overs against the Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings).

While Sehwag launched an attack from the get-go, Warner settled into the game before going all out himself. Both the Delhi star batters scored 77 runs as the side posted a gigantic total of 231/4 on the board.

Punjab's batter Shaun Marsh put up a great fight for his franchise and scored 95 runs but found little to no support from his teammates as the visitors lost the game by 29 runs.

Warner was adjudged the Player of the Match for his commendable batting efforts, which included eight boundaries and three maximums.

#2 93* off 58 vs Gujarat Lions in Qualifier 2 of IPL 2016

David Warner in action for Hyderabad [IPLT20]

Much like Virat Kohli, David Warner too had a stupendous IPL 2016. The-then Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) skipper not only led his troops to a title win but also mustered 848 runs across 17 games.

Perhaps his best innings of the tournament came during a run-chase in Qualifier 2 against Gujarat Lions (GL) in Delhi.

In this game, he showed what a captain should be like. He led from the front when the other batters faltered and left him stranded to do the job all by himself.

Qualifier 2: SRH 163/6 (D Warner 93*, S Kaushik 2-22) Beat GL 162/7 (A Finch 50, B Cutting 2-20) by 4 wickets https://t.co/eCDyQfEgXn

Chasing 162 was never an easy task, especially when wickets kept falling at the other end. Yet, he carried on and scored a mesmerizing 93 not out in just 58 balls.

Where no other SRH batter could score more than 27, Warner led his way to almost a superlative hundred and hunted down the target for his team.

In the end, Bipul Sharma gave him the support he needed as Hyderabad completed a four-wicket win. Warner's innings was the sole reason why Hyderabad qualified for the IPL final in the first place before going on to win it.

#1 107* off 69 vs Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2010

Manifesting a 💥 knock from our skipper on our return to #QilaKotla 🤞

#YehHaiNayiDilli #IPL2023 #DCvGT | @davidwarner31 https://t.co/kpUAS8QCX0

David Warner was the very first player to hit an IPL century at the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium (now Arun Jaitley Stadium) in Delhi. He managed to achieve this feat when he clobbered 107* off 69 balls against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in IPL 2010.

After Delhi skipper Gautam Gambhir won the toss, he decided to bat first. However, the hosts endured a rocky start, losing all three of Sehwag, Gambhir and Dinesh Karthik in the first three overs.

KKR were on top of the game but Warner remained unperturbed and kept counterattacking the opposition. He utilized the powerplay to the full tilt and raced away to his half-century in 29 balls.

Warner found an able ally in Paul Collingwood. The overseas duo racked up 128 runs for the fourth wicket. While Collingwood was dismissed for a well-made 54, Warner continued his onslaught and hammered his way to a marvelous century.

Due to the southpaw's efforts, Delhi went on to win the game by 40 runs.