David Warner joins Delhi Daredevils

David Warner, the New South Wales batsman, has signed a two-year deal with IPL franchise Delhi Daredevils. Warner is the second New South Wales player to be signed by the league's franchises this month, after allrounder Moises Henriques was snapped up by the Kolkata Knight Riders for the 2009 season.

Warner's explosive batting this season caught the attention of IPL franchises. Though yet to make his first-class debut, he hit an unbeaten 165 in an FR Cup match against Tasmania late last month. He has an average of 64 and strike-rate of 117 in eight one-day matches for his state and, against Tasmania recently, narrowly fell short of recording the fastest one-day hundred in Australian domestic history with 97 off 54 balls in a tied game.

"I have watched David Warner in action at both the Emerging Players tournament and Ford Ranger Cup and I have no doubt in my mind that he has great talent and an exciting player," TA Sekhar, a member of the Delhi team-management, was quoted as saying by India Today.

As per the rules set forth by the IPL, any uncapped player - one yet to play an international match or be centrally contracted by a national board - can be signed up outside the player auction scheduled for February 6.

Warner, 22, was spotted by John Buchanan, the former Australian coach currently with the Knight Riders, at the Centre of Excellence nets and sounded out for the franchise. Instead of the Knight Riders, he will join a Daredevils line-up which includes Glenn McGrath, AB de Villiers, Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir.