David Warner Explains Why He Held Back Axar Patel vs Sunrisers Hyderabad

Delhi Capitals is a team struggling to put wins on the board. After suffering yet another defeat in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 season, at the hands of Sunrisers Hyderabad, questions were raised over skipper David Warner's decision to hold back Axar Patel till the end. Axar, who is one of Delhi's most in-form batters at present, came out at No. 7 spot when the equation was pretty skewed for the hosts. At the end of the match, Warner explained his decision to not promote Axar higher in the batting order.

Sunrisers Hyderabad got a much-needed win under their belt, after three losses in a row, as they beat Delhi Capitals in Match 40 of IPL 2023 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Saturday. Abhishek Sharma starred for SRH with an all-round performance of 67 off 36 balls and 1/26 to help Hyderabad win by 9 runs.

When Delhi Capitals needed 58 off 26 balls, Axar Patel was inserted at position No. 7. The Indian all-rounder gave it his all, but the job was too much for him because other batters wasted so many balls.

“He's in good touch but for us, we got off to a good start. With him in the back end, we knew it was going to be vital with spinners spinning into left-handers. We only had myself and Axar (among left-handed batters). Holding Axar for the back end, it can be difficult, but there are challenges that present us when we are in that moment. Maybe we could think about sending him a bit earlier,” Delhi Capitals skipper Warner said in a post-match presentation.

"We were off a bit with the ball, but I think Mitch Marsh bowled fantastic. He was our best bowler. To come up 9 runs short is disappointing. I don't think the pitch slowed down a lot, they took pace off. When you lose wickets in the middle it can be extremely difficult," Warner added further.

In order to win the game, Warner added that the Delhi Capitals must "build momentum" in the middle of the lineup by getting at least two batters to reach 80 or more runs. The Australian added that senior players must take accountability since DC are "suffering" and are in need of help.

"We just have to build momentum through the middle with the bat. We need one or two players to get 80-plus scores and win games for us. We've been losing too many wickets throughout the middle and that's where we're suffering a little bit. Our senior players have to take responsibility. One of us has to get a big total and then it takes care of itself from there," Warner said.

The result sees Delhi Capitals remain bottom of the 10-team IPL 2023 points table. With only 6 league games left for Delhi to play this season, the franchise needs to win almost all of them if they are to remain in the playoffs hunt.

With ANI inputs

source https://sports.ndtv.com/cricket/david-warner-explains-why-he-held-back-axar-patel-till-late-against-sunrisers-hyderabad-3991890