Finale holds out promise of a stirring contest

David Warner’s 93 not out in Friday’s second play-off of the IPL was a tour de force, if such phrase is not misplaced in T20 cricket. It combined virtues of classic strokeplay, superb improvisation, courage, patience and intelligence: all of this in just 20 overs to leave the Gujarat Lions mauled.

Gujarat had finished top of the league table and looked arguably the strongest side in the tournament, with great depth batting and bowling. There must be some sympathy then for Suresh Raina then that his team ran into AB de Villiers and Warner at their brilliant best in successive matches.

In ways Warner’s knock was perhaps a shade better than even de Villiers’s. My reasons for such assessment are based in the circumstances of the two innings: de Villiers had ‘home advantage’, so to speak, since the first play-off was in Bangalore while Delhi was a neutral venue.

Also, the Hyderabad-Gujarat match was an all-or-nothing affair, unlike the first play-off. This obviously added enormously to the pressure on Warner. His innings prevented the complete collapse of Hyderabad’s batting in a grim battle. It also bespoke his ambition — as batsman and captain.

The latter aspect is important for it reveals facets about the aggressive opening batsman that could influence the course of not just the IPL, but also Australian cricket going ahead. Midway through the tournament Warner said he would hunt down Virat Kohli for the orange cap, given to the most prolific run-getter in the IPL. It seemed like a throwaway line, but there has been a steely glint in his eye right through that seems to say, “Be warned, I want to be the best in the world.’’

There’s a parallel of sorts between Kohli and Warner. Both were precocious under-19 players, both got embroiled in controversies early on because of their short temper, both mended their ways and in the past 18-20 months have emerged as the major domos for their respective teams. Kohli’s passage has been relatively smoother. From the under-19 ranks he graduated into the national team seamlessly, first in limited overs cricket and then Tests.

Warner, perceived as a limited overs specialist, had to wait for two years between his ODI and T20 debuts in early 2009 before playing his first Test in 2011 accompanied by a lot of skepticism. Despite early success in Tests, Warner was dropped on grounds of discipline when he scrapped with Joe Root on the 2013 Ashes tour.  His return to the side seemed unsure, but after it happened, the journey has been spectacular.

The last 18-20 months have seen both these players take giant strides in their cricket. Warner was overlooked for the Australian captaincy (which went to Smith), but is vice captain of the side, a quite dramatic turnaround after being dropped in 2013.

Kohli in the meanwhile, has become India’s Test captain. It may have come by default when M S Dhoni retired suddenly, but he has taken to the job like fish to water. Indeed, the question being asked now is whether he shouldn’t captain in all formats.

The remarkable aspect in the careers of both Kohli and Warner in the past 18 months is just how qualitatively excellent and quantitatively prolific they’ve become across formats.

This has come about by aiming for bionic fitness (Warner, always fond of a tipple, has given up alcohol) through exercise and diet, honing skills, and most pertinently in harnessing a mercurial temper. Neither has surrendered aggression, just channelized it for more productive ends. It seems unlikely that Warner (779 runs), while having overtaken de Villiers (682) can overhaul Kohli who has 919 in his kitty. But everybody knows he has the ability to redefine the podium standings in the tournament.

If he could, I suspect Kohli would readily trade his Orange Cap to win the title. And Warner knows that if Kohli and de Villiers fall early, he will get the most coveted reward even if the Orange Cap has proved elusive. This holds out promise of a stirring contest.