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It was there when his arm reached awkwardly towards the base of his back. It was there when a fast delivery smashed him on the elbow, and it was certainly plain to see when a ball cannoned into the side of his head. It was the look of a man in pain.
Even though David Warner continues to make the impossible look pedestrian, that grimace is exactly why Cricket Australia had every right to rest the star opener from the Thunder’s Big Bash League match against Brisbane last night.
West Indian blaster Chris Gayle didn’t see the logic behind the decision. He criticised Cricket Australia for not giving Warner a leave pass.
Gayle’s argument is a simple one. Warner is an excitement machine, so let him play and the crowds will stream through the turnstiles. The competition will continue to be a success and the Thunder’s chances of winning will also improve.
The only problem is that a whole world exists outside of the Twenty20 bubble.
It’s a world that involves rest, both physically and mentally, from the strains of one of the toughest tests of character in sport.
This format is what the name suggests, and Warner has been immersed since the start of December.
The crossover between the two doesn’t seem to pose a problem for the left-hander. If his dashing display against India in Perth is any guide then he seems quite content with using the same technique for T20 as for Tests. How sustainable that is remains to be seen.
The Thunder has every right to feel a little hard done by. Cricket Australia planted them in Sydney’s west and told them to make the Big Bash League a must-see event. The only problem is that while one hand was giving the other was taking their most important asset away.
Recruiting the poster boy of the competition – maybe even the face of the game in general – was always going to be a risky move. Given the fluctuating form of Phil Hughes and Warner’s increasingly attractive first-class form, a Test call-up was a growing possibility.
The gamble didn’t pay off.
If Warner was 100 percent fit then an argument could be made that a Big Bash ban between Tests may have been overly cautious, but given the grimaces at the WACA it seems entirely appropriate.
The beauty of the Big Bash is that it’s simple enough to stand on its own two feet.
The only thing that matters is a white ball flying over a fence. It doesn’t really matter who has connected blade with ball.
The amount of relatively unknown players making a name for themselves has proved that beyond doubt.
Life under a myrtle green cap that is slightly baggy, not a baseball cap coloured lime green, is what’s more important to Warner now. It’s nice to know that Cricket Australia sees it the same way.
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