IPL 2020: From punching Joe Root to sandpapergate, David Warner's 5 most controversial moments

David Warner is currently leading Sunrisers Hyderabad in the ongoing Indian Premier League, being held in the United Arab Emirates. He has been playing for the side since 2014, having previously played for Delhi Daredevils. Currently, he holds a number of records in the tournament.

When it comes to David Warner, he is famous for being Australia's flamboyant opener, who can give the perfect start to any side he plays for. However, he has not always been on the good side in the field of cricket.

Known for his aggressive nature of the gameplay, he also has a knack of being conniving and embroiling himself in controversies. As a result, he has faced the wrath of the management and administration on a number of occasions.

From punching England's Joe Root to a ploy for tampering with the ball, he has had his share of controversies. On the same note, we rank some of his top-five controversies to date.

Sandpapergate: Undoubtedly, it has to be on the top of the list. It was in March 2018 when Australia were playing a Test against South Africa in Cape Town. However, television footage showed that Cameron Bancroft was using sandpaper to scrub the ball, tampering it in the process. Bancroft later admitted that it was a ploy by both, skipper Steve Smith, along with Warner. Consequently, both were handed a year ban by Cricket Australia (CA) for shaming the side in the sport.

Punching Root: One of the lowest points in Warner's career, he embroiled himself in controversy at a pub in Birmingham. While he was having a drink at a pub in 2013, following England's win over Australia, Root happened to be wearing a green and gold coloured wig, before moving to his chin to mock Hashim Amla. Infuriated Warner lost his temper and punched Root, while Clint McKay made peace between the two. While Warner was dropped from the ICC Champions Trophy game against New Zealand, he was suspended until Ashes 2013, besides being fined £7,000.

What goes around, comes around: Prior to the sandpapergate, it was in 2016, when South Africa were visiting Australia, as Faf du Plessis was seen shining the ball using saliva and mint in his mouth, for which he was sanctioned. Following the incident, Warner said, "I just know from an Australian cricket perspective, we hold our heads high and, you know, I'd be very disappointed if one of our team members did that and how they were reacting. The rules are in place for a reason, if you're not going to use them, then why bother having them? That's just the fortunate thing these days, they've got the rules and they're going to stand by their decisions, and I think that's a good thing." Although Warner wasn't fined for it, the incident came back to haunt him two years later.

Spat with Rohit Sharma: In 2015, during an ODI against India at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), Rohit had scrambled for an extra run via an overthrow. Warner, who presumed that Rohit had done so after the ball deflected off his legs, which actually hadn't, started to criticise him. Rohit was irritated and said something back to him in Hindi, as Warner further reacted by asking him to speak in English. The Australian was fined 50% of his match fees for his actions, before being warned by CA CEO, James Sutherland.

Picking a fight with a journalist: In 2013, after the Indian Premier League (IPL) was rocked by the spot-fixing scandal, an Australian journalist, Robert Craddock, posted his photo, in connection to the incident. An irked Warner posted on Twitter, saying, "Wow @crashcraddock1 some smart journo who thinks he can bring Down people. Well done CHAMP!! (sic)." Following this, CA imposed a fine of AU $5,750 upon Warner, while Warner later argued that he was just trying to defend himself for being dragged into something he was not a part of.