Dropping the first hint that he may have another Ashes campaign in the UK in 2023, David Warner cites the longevity of England’s record-breaking seamstress, James Anderson, as evidence that players can maintain their competitive advantage well into their late 30s Years to keep.
Warner, who will approach 37 when Australia begins its Ashes defense in 18 months, went through a horror campaign during his previous stay in the UK where he managed 95 runs averaging 9.50 from five tests.
He was also dropped from Sunrisers Hyderabad’s starting XI during the recent Indian Premier League despite having been a star in the competition for years, leading some to predict that his international game days would be numbered as well.
But the explosive start struck back to be named Player of the Tournament in the recent ICC T20 World Cup, won by Australia, and is with 240 runs averaging 60.
After Australia’s impressive victory in the third Vodafone Test in Melbourne, which ensured the urn they held since 2017-18 and which they defended with a 2-2 draw in 2019, Warner stated it was still there were unfulfilled career goals that propel him on to the test arena.
And he noted that the efforts of 39-year-old Anderson, who this week bowled the Ashes career this week at the MCG, which many commentators have considered the best spells of his five tours in Australia, served as both inspiration and motivation.
“James Anderson is the benchmark for older boys these days and we look forward to seeing him move forward in our day,” said Warner, before focusing on the ambitions that remain in the twilight of his hugely successful testing period.
“Obtaining the ashes here was of course a big issue.
“We still haven’t beaten India in India, that would be nice.
“And England gone, we had a drawn streak (2019) but hopefully if I get this opportunity I’ll think about going back.”
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One of the main reasons he is dying to return to the UK, where Australia hasn’t beaten England in a series since 2001, is to bury the ghost of his stay in 2019, where he was constantly met by Anderson’s veteran New Ball partner, Stuart Broad was haunted.
Broad attacked the left-handed opener around the wicket, sacking Warner seven times in his 10 innings, in which the Australian hit a high of 11.
Warner, who is just a handful of runs away from overtaking Mark Taylor (7525) as the second-topping opener in the Australia Test behind Matthew Hayden (8625), admitted that he was delighted that Broad was only awarded one of the top three Ashes- Tests was selected summer.
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“As for 2019, it was obviously in England so he (Broad) was able to make the ball come back inside and away from us,” Warner said today.
“For me it was one of those tours where I didn’t support my game plan and went too defensively and didn’t attack.
“It was my fault and he bowled really well.
“Out here they (England) obviously chose Ollie Robinson for a reason …
“I wouldn’t say I was surprised, they have done it before in Australia.
“You both (Broad and Anderson) haven’t played here too often – you might see him (Broad) play in the next game, and maybe Jimmy will miss it.
“I can’t worry about what they’re doing, but from our perspective, I think it’s great that he (Broad) isn’t playing.”
During his lean period earlier this year, Warner held onto the mantra that he was simply “out of runs, out of shape”.
But his value for Australia’s Test top order was underscored in the current rematch against England, where he scored 94 and 95 in the first two Tests and his team’s only innings at the MCG.
While that final score barely made any headlines, it came at a crucial time – in the final hour of day one – when the batting was the toughest and Warner was putting pressure on the opposing bowlers again when Australia immediately pushed forward to England’s below-average grand total of 185 .
The danger looming in that final hour – which Australia finished at 1:61 – was in sharp contrast to the argument England found again the next day under the same circumstances when they limped at 4:31 and effectively eliminated from the competition.
It is that courage to bring the game to the rival New Ball bowlers who take Australia’s blows from England, who have had five opening scores of less than 10 out of their six innings to date in this series.
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And Warner has announced that he will take the same bullish approach in the fourth test of the SCG next week.
It is a clear warning as he put a memorable century behind him in the first session of the 2017 New Years Test against Pakistan at the location of the 2012 Perth Test.
“For me, it’s about putting that pressure back on,” Warner said of his conflicting mindset.
“If I sit back and try to defend myself on those kind of wickets, I’ll probably get away.
“I felt like this (MCG pitch) was one of those types of wickets that you couldn’t leave too much of the length on because there was that variation (in bounce) while Brisbane and Adelaide had that line and Could leave length.
“It’s about how I can score from this line and length, and about opening up the offside.
“With Woody (Mark Wood, England’s fastest bowler), I can cut and pull anything less than a length and create these opportunities for myself to try and chase them, and that’s how I usually go about it.
“The MCG and the SCG are pretty similar in this regard.
“The SCG doesn’t go up and down, it’s pretty traditional and if anything it gets lower and slower as the game progresses.
“So this is going to be another venue where I’ll probably have to go to the bowlers a little more as well.”
Vodafone men’s ashes
Squad
Australia: Pat Cummins (c), Steve Smith (vc), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Marcus Harris, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Jhye Richardson, Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Swepson , David Warner
England: Joe Root (c), James Anderson, Jonathan Bairstow, Dom Bess, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Zak Crawley, Haseeb Hameed, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Dawid Malan, Craig Overton, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Ben Stokes , Chris Woakes, Mark Wood
Time schedule
First test: Australia wins with nine wickets
Second test: Australia won with 275 runs
Third test: Australia won with one innings and 14 runs
Fourth test: 5-9 January, SCG
Fifth test: 14.-18. January, Blundstone Arena