During Thursday’s semifinal match between South Africa and Australia at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, David Warner made history as the first batter from Australia to score 500 runs in two separate ODI World Cup editions.
In the most recent World Cup in 2019, the left-hander amassed 647 runs. Warner is also just the third batter in the history of two World Cups to score more than 500 runs, following Indians Rohit Sharma (2019 and 2023) and Sachin Tendulkar (1996 and 2003).
Three other Australians have scored 500 runs or more in a World Cup: Aaron Finch (2019), Ricky Ponting (2007), and Matthew Hayden (2007).
David Warner, Australia’s opening batsman, was performing at his best during the second ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 semi-final. He fielded deep in Kolkata’s Eden Gardens during the match, dancing to the soundtrack of his favorite Indian movie. Fans of the sport and Warner on Instagram are well aware of his love for Indian films and his ability to create humorous Reels and TikToks based on some of the songs. He adores the movie “Pushpa: The Rise,” which features Allu Arjun, who is his favorite actor. Warner has released multiple videos featuring him dancing to the upbeat song “Srivalli” from the movie.
The same dance by Warner was seen by cricket fans in Kolkata on Thursday night. The Australian batter was urged to dance by the fans when the DJ played the song. When Warner first fielded close to the ropes, he hesitated and simply waved to the fans. But he had to perform the well-known dance move as soon as the roar got loud.
When Australia came out to chase the 213 runs that South Africa had set for them in the elimination match, Warner hammered 29 off 18 balls. The pursuit was getting closer to a close finish at the time this article was written. Earlier, in less than 49 overs, Australian bowlers claimed all 10 South African wickets with impressive bowling performances.
India has already advanced to the World Cup final. On Wednesday, the Men in Blue defeated New Zealand by a commanding score of 70 runs in the first semi-final. The biggest cricket stadium in the world, the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, will host the match between the victorious South Africa and Australia and the undefeated India.
Warner, who turned 37 recently, may play his final World Cup match if Australia loses to South Africa. The Australian cricket player has already informed Cricket Australia that, after the World Cup, he will be in contact with them to discuss his white-ball options. In order to secure a spot in the final, the aggressive batter hopes to end on a high and will be hoping that Australia can catch up to the modest target set by South Africa in the second semifinal.
In ODI World Cups, Warner has been a mainstay for Australia, amassing over 1500 runs in 28 innings at an average of nearly sixty and striking at over one hundred. In the current World Cup, Warner became the first batter from Australia to reach 500 runs with this hit. After Virat Kohli, Quinton de Kock, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Rohit Sharma, and Shreyas Iyer, he became just the seventh batter to accomplish the feat in this World Cup.
Australia’s chase of 213 runs in the second semi-final of the 2023 ODI World Cup against South Africa got off to a quick start thanks to David Warner and Travis Head. After his team was down to 24 for 4 early in the innings, David Miller became the first South African to score a century in an ODI World Cup elimination match.
The two Australian bowlers who took the most wickets in the first innings were Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins. Australia’s goal is to make it to their eighth ODI World Cup final by chasing down 213 runs.
