The Guardian

Warner gears up for last crack at old rivals as Test farewell beckons

Geoff Lemon Beckenham

David Warner has laid out his ideal plan for retirement across cricket’s three formats, the opener eyeing a hometown Sydney Test farewell in January. That would follow an exit from one-day cricket at the 50-over World Cup in November, before carrying on in the shortest form until the T20 World Cup in June 2024.

“That’s pending on what you guys write, and whether the selectors pick me,” he told reporters at Australia’s training ground in Beckenham before the World Test Championship final against India at the Oval, beginning on Wednesday, and the Ashes series to follow. “You’ve got to score runs. I’ve always said the [T20] World Cup would probably be my final game. I probably owe it to myself and my family if I can score runs here [to] continue to play back in Australia.”

It would mean ending his Test career halfway through the home season, with Pakistan’s three matches coming in Perth, Melbourne and Sydney before West Indies play in Adelaide and Brisbane. But the symbolism of a final lap at his home SCG is the lure.

“I can definitely say I won’t be playing that West Indies series,” he said. “If I can get through this and make the Pakistan series I will definitely finish up then.”

Getting through the Ashes will be the challenge, after his haunted 2019 tour that returned 95 runs in 10 innings. While saying the right things about the WTC final being the first priority, it was clear Warner is already relishing the prospect of resuming conflict on the field with England’s Stuart Broad.

Off the field, with a slight smile, Warner could not resist a few digs in response to Broad’s recent suggestions that the pandemic era should “void” England’s most recent thrashing in Australia. “Do I void that series?” Warner asked of his 2019 struggles. “It’s part and parcel of the game if people are bowling well.

“I go back and look at the dismissals and look at both opening pairs – it was a difficult time to bat. I looked at the 2018 Dukes ball compared to the 2023 ball, it’s completely different. There was a higher pronounced seam back then. They wanted to use those balls, they had that choice, and it was hard to tackle.

“There was nothing to do with any of my technique or anything like that. If I was critical of myself it was probably going away from my gameplan, which is looking to score. I was listening to some other voices which probably didn’t suit my game.

“I felt like I batted my best at Leeds and that was the way I normally played. If you can put the bowlers off their line and lengths and put pressure on them, that’s when you score runs and that’s when I’m at my best.”

That aggression is what he nominated as his key for countering England’s bowlers, as well as technical

discipline in playing straight against the round-the-wicket line they used so successfully on his last visit.

“You’ve got to get into positions where you allow the ball to beat you on the outside. If I get beaten on the outside of my bat and my off stump gets rissoled, [at least] I’ve got in the right position.

“I’ve worked hard on that over the years to try and do that and I think that’s only happened once since. You’re going to get a ball that angles down towards leg and then swings away, if that happens then so be it.

“From an opener’s perspective, it’s going to be challenging. But you have to be brave. In these conditions with world-class bowlers, you can’t allow them to settle.”

The Observer

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2023-06-04T07:00:00.0000000Z

2023-06-04T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://guardian.pressreader.com/article/281771338579889

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