Australia’s veteran opening batsman David Warner hogged the limelight after his heartwarming gesture to groundsmen during the Australia vs Sri Lanka match in ICC Men’s ODI World Cup 2023 at Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow. It is cognizance of the fact that the groundsmen play a substantial role in preparing the pitches and maintaining the playing field.
In fact, they mow the outfield grass, making sure that it is of the appropriate length for the smooth movement of the cricketers. They also keep a tab on the weather conditions if the rain marks its presence and bring the covers in order to cover the pitch and the surrounding areas. The groundsmen use special equipment in an attempt to dry the pitch rapidly if it gets wet.
David Warner assists groundsmen during the AUS vs SL match
They do all these things to make sure that the games go on properly under the best possible conditions. Case in point, David Warner was seen lending a helping hand to the groundsmen when the rain interrupted the passage of the play. The incident happened during the 33rd over when the heavy showers prompted the groundsmen to do their thing.
Watch the video below:-
https://twitter.com/AnkitElvishB/status/1713881388682993727
Meanwhile, Warner joined them and assisted them in bringing the covers during the AUS vs SL match. The video clip of the same garnered the attention of the cricket fraternity, with the majority of the fans lauding the Australian cricketer for his heartwarming gesture.
Talking about the game, Sri Lanka made a complete mess in their batting department as the batters failed to steady the ship after the openers’ dismissals. At one stage, Sri Lanka were in a commanding position a 157/2, courtesy of Kusal Perera’s 78 and Pathum Nissanka’s 61.
After the openers fell prey to Australian pacer Pat Cummins, Sri Lanka didn’t recover as they lost wickets like a pack of cards before eventually getting bundled out for 209. Adam Zampa was the pick of the bowlers for Australia as he accounted for 4 dismissals, giving away 47 runs in 8 overs.