David Warner believes Virat Kohli sets the benchmark
David Warner has been an asset for every team he has played for – be it the Australian team, Indian Premier League or the Big Bash League. His best attribute, he feels, is being aggressive at the top of the order in the long format of the game.
"It is about the intent to score," he said in an interview with ESPNcricinfo. "That is probably why I have been successful so far, because I haven't gone into my shell where I have looked to defend in Test cricket."
Warner is the first player who sported the Baggy Green by playing T20s. He is explosive in all the three formats of the game and says that he does not find it hard to adapt. On being asked how he adjusts mentally to the time factor, especially in the T20 format, he highlights, "As an opening batsman I know we have 120 balls. When I am batting, if I can face half of those deliveries, I am doing my job for the team. The crucial thing is to get off to a good start.
"In this game, it is funny – it has got a lot more time than you think. If you (get your eye in) in the first six to ten overs, you still have 60 balls. That is a lot of time. It is not about hitting fours and sixes straightaway," he added.
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Taking Virat Kohli as an example of an established player, he says "He knows he probably can't be like Chris Gayle or AB de Villiers. But he is a conventional player. He plays very good cricket shots. He gives himself time. He comes down the wicket and hits over cover and midwicket all the time. That is his strength. He knows his game so well.”
Warner also feels that a lot of players who don't have the capacity and the power to clear the ropes can learn from this quality of the Indian right-hander.
Warner also highlights the challenges of captaincy
A backbone for his IPL franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad, Warner is the captain, opener and inarguably the best batsman for the team. He made an unbeaten 90 in their only victorious match so far in the tournament against Mumbai Indians. However, in the 19 matches he has captained for the team, they have won only eight matches and have lost 11.
He admits it is tough to take constant defeats. "It hurts more now that we don't win as much as we had planned. You go, 'How can we do this better, how can we do that better', whereas as a player you go back and reflect on your own game.”
The Hyderabad franchise has Tom Moody as their coach and VVS Laxman as their batting consultant. Apart from Warner, they also have New Zealand captain Kane Williamson and England T20 captain Eoin Morgan, but the team is yet to perform to their true potential.
"As a captain you are worrying about everything else, but you've still got to worry about your own game. It is tough, but you have to be a strong person to make sure that everyone is galvanising together. It is easy to mope around and not talk about it, but when you express the feelings to everyone and keep it in the group, it goes a long way,” he added.