Delhi Capitals (DC) suffered a crushing 77-run defeat at the hands of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Saturday (May 20) to bow out of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 season.
Opting to bat first, CSK piled up a massive 223/3 on the board on the back of half-centuries from Devon Conway (87 off 52) and Ruturaj Gaikwad (79 off 50).
In reply, the Capitals managed only 146/9 in their allotted 20 over. Skipper David Warner waged a lone battle during the chase, scoring 86 off 58 balls with 7 fours and 5 sixes.
Speaking after the game, Warner blamed the team's batting unit for their dismal IPL 16 campaign. While the DC captain pull up the side's bowling unit for conceding 223 runs against CSK, he mentioned that the bowlers did well on the whole during the tournament.
"Look, to be honest, we didn't execute with the ball. I have been speaking it all season that if we don't pitch it on the correct lengths we are gonna get thrashed," Warner said at the post-match presentation ceremony.
"There were some positives, we weren't too bad with the ball, with the bat, we didn't form partnerships, we lost wickets in groups, we suffered some painful losses," he added.
When asked what lies ahead of Delhi Capitals, Warner replied: "We'll need to examine these areas and improve for next season. Since we have received some of these wickets this season, we cannot keep blaming them. No matter how challenging the circumstances are, we must adapt. You must adhere to your game plan, hit the boundaries, and counter-spin with your feet."
During the campaign, David Warner himself drew criticism for his batting strike rate. The southpaw acknowledged that one needed to bat at a good strike rate to do well in the competition but it got difficult with the side losing wickets in a bunch.
"You need to have a strong SR to give yourself a chance, so I want to be consistent at the top of the order, but we kept losing wickets in the first six overs and this is the main area which we need to counter in the next season," the DC captain concluded.
