Shane Watson has voiced his support towards Delhi Capitals skipper and fellow Australian David Warner after the veteran opener looked far from his old aggressive self across the first few games of the ongoing season of the IPL.
Despite being the second-highest runscorer in IPL 2023, and scoring three half-centuries, Warner has not managed to hit a single six and has scored at a sluggish run rate of 114.83
Warner's efforts fell short most recently in Delhi's loss to the Mumbai Indians and the Capitals have now lost all four games they played this season. However, Watson was certain that the skipper showed a "more fearless mindset" during that innings and that he was 'so close' to getting back to the performances he is renowned for.
"The other night, Dave [Warner] definitely had a [much] more fearless mindset with the way he was batting," Watson said on theย Grade Cricketerย podcast.
"He was taking the game onโฆ yes, he missed a few balls that in the past he would have hit for four or six, he's mis-hit a couple of balls, but that's all part of Dave just working through the technical side of his game.
"That's also part of my role as well, as a coach. Because I know Dave so well from batting with him and playing with him, there's one or two little things that I know he'll get right over the next couple of days and I'll be blown away if he doesn't - yes, he's been scoring runs, but from a scoring perspective - if he doesn't set the IPL alight from now on, knowing that he's so close.
"He's batting very nicely. He's just mis-hitting some balls that he'd normally hit for four or six. Once you do that, once you start really finding the middle of your bat, then your scoring rate just goes through the roof."
During Delhi's loss to Rajasthan Royals, Warner became the fastest player to score 6000 runs in the IPL, accomplishing the stellar record at an average strike rate of 139.61, only highlighting that ability and immense presence at the crease since his IPL debut in 2009.
Watson also said that Warner has been faced with the dilemma of taking risks or not as wickets have steadily fallen at the other end.
"It goes against a lot of the things that you're taught as a kid growing up,
"You lose a wicket, you've got to establish a partnership - even in T20
cricket - for five or six balls.
"But then, if you do that and you keep losing wickets after five or six balls, before you know it, you're three overs down and you've just been rotating ones to try and build a partnership. Dave was just working through that himself in the first few games."
"It's never perfect when you lose your first four games," Watson said.
"but that is the beauty of having someone with the skill of Ricky Ponting as a coach, and just his understanding of people. That's the beauty of being a coach, to be able to help the guys where they need it.
"These are the times when you really see the true colours of people and coaches, when things aren't going well. It's a true sign of character: how you can work through the little things that are not going how we want them to, to turn them around and be more consistent."
Delhi Capitals will see Mitchell Marsh returning after a two-game absence, against their next outing away at Royal Challengers Bangalore, and will look to clinch their first points of IPL 2023.
