David Warner Opens Up On Dark Chapter When He Was Blocked By SunRisers Hyderabad, Says "It Hurt"

Delhi Capitals (DC) and Australian opener David Warner on Monday opened up on his unceremonious exit from his former Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad, calling his departure from SRH as "bizarre". Warner was speaking on Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin's YouTube channel. After playing for Delhi Capitals from 2009-13 in the IPL, Warner was bought by SRH in 2014 and stayed with the franchise till 2021.

However, despite winning the 2016 IPL with the franchise as a captain and scoring heaps of runs for the Orange Army, the Aussie experienced an unceremonious exit from the side, which came slowly. First, he was sacked as a captain midway through the 2021 season because of his poor form and frequent losses for SRH. New Zealand batter Kane Williamson replaced him as the captain after Warner lost five out of the first six games of the season.

In the second half of the season, not only Warner was dropped, but also blocked by the franchise on social media. Sadness was visible on Warner's face, as he even carried drinks for his team during matches. SRH finished at the bottom with three wins and 11 losses. Warner also scored poorly, making just 195 runs in eight innings with two fifties at an average of 24.38 and a sub-par strike rate of just over 107, which is not associated with his more attacking gameplay.

Speaking on Ashwin's channel, Warner said that the treatment from the team management and him being blocked from social media did hurt him because it was also a "hurt for fans", something Warner considered really important during his stint with the franchise.

"It did hurt because it was a sense of like hurt for fans. The fans are the most important relationship you could have. The engagement with the