David Warner, captain of the Delhi Capitals (DC), has urged the franchise’s young Indian batters to find a way to thrive against fast bowling. He stated that he can’t instruct how to bat, but instead, the batters must figure out their own method of tackling pace bowling.
In the current Indian Premier League 2023, DC’s young Indian batters, such as Prithvi Shaw, Sarfaraz Khan, and Yash Dhull, have struggled against high-quality fast bowling. As a result, Delhi has had difficulty amassing enough runs to keep up with opponents.
On Thursday, April 20, the Delhi Capitals defeated the Kolkata Knight Riders by four wickets in the last over, despite some struggles from the DC batters against the KKR pacers. At the post-match press conference, when asked about the difficulties of young Indian batters facing genuinely fast bowling, Warner replied:
“We don’t really have too many discussions because you have to back your skills, and I can’t tell people how to bat. You have to actually work it out.
“If you are going to face bowling, guys who bowl at 150 kmph, you need to have the technique and method to score, and if they are going to keep coming at you and they bowl into your ribcage, you have to find a way to score.”
“In the nets, it’s very difficult to practice; even in Australia, we don’t practice the short-pitch balls. I feel if you practice the short ball all the time in the game, you would be tentative. It’s a reaction skill, and you have to remember that the bowlers are going to bowl only one short ball in this format, and that’s a good thing for the batsman.”
“Little things can happen when you are chasing small totals”: Warner
After being at 62/1, their progress was cut short as they found themselves struggling at 111/6. In the end, however, they secured the victory in 19.2 overs. Post-game, Warner stated:
“I think chasing 128 is quite a low total. There can be a little bit of; I wouldn’t say nerve, but a bit scratchy. After losing five games on the trot, these games are hard to win. We lost wickets again, too many consecutive wickets, we have to try and work on that, but little things can happen when you are chasing small totals.”