‘We knew we had to get 200’ – Warner

Sunrisers Hyderabad captain David Warner has said scoring over 200 was the key in the IPL final against Royal Challengers Bangalore. Warner had opted to bat in Bangalore and helped his team put up 208 for 7 with his ninth half-century of the tournament, which they won for the first time in their fourth season.

“We knew we had to get 200 against these guys, they have a phenomenal batting line-up,” Warner said. “We knew we had to win three games to win this tournament. To come here and beat Bangalore in front of this crowd, we were true underdogs. But we executed our skills, we batted well, bowled well, and fielded well. For us, the key was team effort all the way. [Time to put my feet up] for 24 hours and then I’m off to the Caribbean. But the guys will well and truly celebrate this and it’s time to have a beer.

“[It’s a] fantastic team achievement and for me personally it’s overwhelming. To lead this side and the support these players gave me to lead by example and me pulling my weight with the runs…Obviously all the other guys doing their job. But look, it’s been fantastic, it’s been a hard journey for the last two years. From my experience as captain, the credit goes to all the guys.

“You need to get a lot of individual players to step up, players need to gel together and get the combinations right. For us the key was to try and emulate with our fielding, that part towards the end here.”

Warner did not hesitate to praise the efforts and form of his counterpart, Virat Kohli, who scored 54 off 35 and was part of a rapid opening stand of 114 in 10.3 overs with Chris Gayle, before quick wickets dented Royal Challengers’ chase and they never recovered.

“What a leader, Virat Kohli,” Warner said. “I can’t take it away from him. …

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