It took a steadfast southpaw with a scraggly moustache to beard the lion in its own den. David Warner led from the front for VIVO IPL 2016 champion Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), not just in the final against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and on its home turf, but all through the campaign.
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“Davey was not just a proactive captain but a very quick learner. He understood the role of each player,” Tirumalasetti Suman told The Hindu, in awe of his captain. Although the hard-hitting batsman didn’t play a single game, the soft-spoken Hyderabad player saw the coincidences.
“In 2009 when Deccan Chargers won IPL-II in South Africa, the Australian connection couldn’t be missed. We were led by Adam Gilchrist, also a left-hander, who played a pivotal role in our fortunes, while Darren Lehman was coach. Now it’s the combination of Warner and Tom Moody and interestingly, we defeated RCB even in that final,” recalled Suman, also a member of the 2011 Champions League winning Mumbai Indians.
“The seeds for our triumph were sown by our think-tank triumvirate of Tom Moody, V.V.S. Laxman and Muthiah Muralitharan, who plotted most of the moves, right from the auction itself. There was clarity in the camps backed by great support staff,” said Suman.
The dressing atmosphere was congenial, with no superstar airs or egos coming into play. Even the vernacular language expletives from the foreign players evoked laughter rather than giving offence.
“Mustafizur Rahman had one stock reply, “no problem,” which was just about all the English he knew. During every time-out, Ricky Bhui, who had grown up in Kolkata, was taken along to explain things to the ‘Fizz’ in Bengali. Otherwise on the field, it was sign language,” said Suman.
“Our bowling was aggressive thanks to Ashish Nehra mentoring Bhuvi (Bhuvneshwar Kumar) and Sran (Barinder). So when Gayle (Chris) was going great guns, we never lost sight of our goal of picking up wickets, which eventually saw RCB crumble.
“Even in the huddle before taking the field, Davey was clear we were playing on the rival’s turf and the crowd naturally would support their home side. We have to give our best was the skipper’s simple message,” said Suman.
“This triumph is dedicated to the people of Hyderabad, who waited long for this, loyally supporting us and turning up in large numbers, even when we were down. After clinching the cup, most of the players, especially the foreigners, were keen to go home and dispersed from Bangalore itself. But before that we partied all night long, till 6 a.m.,” said the part-time spinner, his eyelids heavy with arrears of sleep as he waited to take an evening flight home.
“For me personally, this is the best wedding gift I can give my fiancé Julaiikha Patnam,” the swashbuckler signed off, with D-day set for August 26.
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