The last three seasons of the Indian Premier League (IPL) have been great for the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) as they lifted the trophy in 2016 and were the runners-up in the last season. This year, they will be starting their campaign against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the iconic Eden Gardens on March 24. The Hyderabad based franchise is one of the top contenders for winning the 2019 edition of the T20 tournament.
SRH will also welcome their 2016 tournament winning captain Australia’s David Warner to the fold, as in the last season he was banned by IPL governing council from participating in 2018 along with Steve Smith, for their roles in the ball tampering scandal in South Africa.
Both the Australia players will be eligible to play in international cricket after March 29, though there were speculations that they will be joining the Australian squad for the Pakistan ODI series in Dubai. The Australian team management felt that playing for their respective franchises in the IPL 2018, will be the best preparation for them. The duo is expected to make their Australia returns in the upcoming ICC World Cup 2019.
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Warner has been a popular player in Hyderabad, ever since he led the Sunrisers to the trophy in 2016 and was one of the top three batsmen in the batting charts in IPL 2016 and IPL 2017. Warner and Smith had made a pitstop in Dubai on their way to India.
There, they met up with the Australia team and participated in the reintegration process of the team and got to know their teammates a bit better. Warner has played 114 IPL games, scoring 4014 runs with 3 centuries including a highest score of 126 at an average of 40.54 and strike rate of 142.13. His best season was 2016, where he made 848 runs in 17 matches.
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David Warner posted a photo on his official Instagram handle with a message saying,
“Great to be back here in Hyderabad with @sunrisershyd I can’t thank the franchise and fans enough for your loyal support over the last 12months. Time to get back into it. #orangearmy #sideprofile”
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