IPL 2021: Kane Williamson replaces David Warner as SRH captain for remainder of tournament
IPL 2021: Kane Williamson replaces David Warner as SRH captain for remainder of tournament
Kane Williamson has replaced David Warner as Sunrisers Hyderabad's captain for the remainder of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 season, the franchise announced on Saturday.
"SunRisers Hyderabad would like to announce that Kane Williamson will be taking over the captaincy for tomorrow's match and for the remainder of IPL 2021. The team management has also made the decision that they will be changing their overseas combination for tomorrow's match against Rajasthan Royals," wrote Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in an official release.
"This decision has not come lightly as the management respects the enormous impact David Warner has had for the franchise over a number of years. As we face the remainder of the season, we are sure David will continue to help us strive for success both on and off the field," SRH's release read further.
With just one win in six matches, SRH are currently at the bottom of the IPL 2021 points table.
Warner, who has been associated with SRH since 2014, was named the captain of
the side in 2015. SRH failed to go past the group stage during Warner's first year in charge. Apart from that season, Warner had led SRH into the playoffs in every single campaign, including winning the title in 2016. SRH defeated Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the final at their backyard of Chinnaswamy Stadium.
In fact, Warner has been SRH's best batsman as well, over the years. He has scored 500 runs or more in each of the seasons he has been with SRH.
Warner, who has scored 5,447 runs in the IPL, is also SRH's leading run scorer, having scored 4,012 runs in 93 innings at an average of 50.78. He has scored over 2,000 runs more than second-placed Shikhar Dhawan, who now plays for Delhi Capitals (DC).
Meanwhile, in the absence of Warner in 2018, Williamson led SRH to the final. Unfortunately, he could not lead the side to the title as they lost the final to Chennai Super Kings (CSK). As captain, Willaimson had done well with the bat too as he had finished the tournament's leading run scorer with 735 runs in 17 innings at an average of 52.50.