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So David Warner has been sent to South Africa. The only pity is that he’s coming back. His on-field reputation is the biggest hoodwinking since The Sixth Sense.
Gerard Whateley started the nonsense in the Daily Telegraph a week and a half ago, calling for Warner to be immediately reinstated to the national side before the Ashes, claiming “he is a rare and brutal match-winner”.
Perhaps this is the case in the many T20 domestic scenes. It might be true in the T20 internationals, although it should be noted he’s made single figure scores in four of his last five innings in the format.
Anyway, isn’t Australia ranked 211th in the world for T20? Actually, it’s equal 7th, just ahead of those cricketing powerhouses Ireland, Bangladesh, Scotland, etc. Can’t be winning too many matches from down there, despite having this rare gem in our midst.
There’s doubt over whether he’s this mythical match-winner in ODI’s either, ranked 47th best batsman in the world on the ICC official rankings. Considering the best four batsmen in any team traditionally fill the top four spots in this form of cricket, Warner should just be squeezing in a game for the Netherlands if he were eligible.
But few people care about International T20’s and fewer still about those of the fifty over variety.
Test cricket is the format that still pulsates and excites like no other, where respect takes an eternity to earn but is only ever one false shot away from being ignominiously lost.
Firstly, let’s forget all this rot about Warner being a match-winner who takes the game away from the opposition, as his supporters so often claim.
Only one of his three test centuries has resulted in a win, and that was when Australia beat the empty carcass that was the Indian cricket team in 2011/12, by over an innings in Perth. Warner’s whirlwind century, while thrilling, was hardly critical.
This was an India whose opening bowler, Ishant Sharma, averaged over 90 runs per wicket for the series. Take away Warner’s 180 at the WACA, and he scored 86 runs at 17.
Warner also scored runs against the Sri Lankan pop-gun attack in 2012/13, making four consecutive fifty’s against a side who couldn’t find a fast bowler to average under 40 for the series. The little old lady who lives next door could have scored four consecutive fifty’s against what Warner faced, and it’s even money she’d have converted one of them to a hundred.
Australia’s performance in the first test against England, sans Warner, was the most meritorious since defeating South Africa in Johannesburg 2011, the Pat Cummins test. Warner didn’t play in that one either, although it’s fascinating to note the top scorer in that successful run chase was none other than Usman Khawaja.
At Edgbaston, Australia displayed remarkable resilience in only going down by 14 runs.
It was evident in every ball bowled and faced that new coach Darren Lehmann is intent on building a side of great character.
There were many examples of this, such as Chris Rogers careful occupation of the crease in the second innings, James Pattinson’s highly disciplined bowling for limited reward, or Ashton Agar’s entire test match.
Character. Careful. Highly Disciplined
These are not the key words one associates with David Warner. Instead, let’s try immature, reckless, impulsive.
Everything about the man smacks of lack of respect.
For opposition players, as shown by the punch thrown at Joe Root.
For the media, through his infantile Twitter tirade against Conn and Craddock.
Frankly, for anyone with eyes, based on his latest moustache.
All of this pales into insignificance compared to his abdication of responsibility once he walks out to bat though. The simple fact is, Warner puts himself ahead of the team, and would rather look good than do good.
All of the above (apart from the mo’), and more, combine to show an appalling lack of respect for the baggy green cap, and what it means to represent Australia in its national sport.
Andrew Webster,the Chief Sports Writer at the Sydney Morning Herald had this to say in his summary of the First test at Trent Bridge – “there are major deficiencies in the Australian top order which “have been bubbling along…for several series”.
His solution, naturally, is to bring back the one mainstay of that same top order to fix these problems. What a piece of deductive reasoning!
He goes on to write that “the Australian batting line-up needs Kid Rock”. We can only assume this is his pet nickname for David Warner, and he isn’t calling for the 42 year old American musician to pack the creams and head to London. Although with the aforementioned leap of logic, it’s hard to be clear.
Either way, it’s hard to fathom anyone calling for Warner’s return after what we saw at Edgbaston.
The future of Australian cricket lies in the hands of Phil Hughes, Steve Smith, Usman Khawaja, Ashton Agar and James Pattinson, young men with the character to match their talent.
Let them be guided by Darren Lehmann off the field, and Chris Rogers and Peter Siddle on it, no-frills cricketers who would die for their team-mates in pursuit of victory, and unashamedly savour every moment they’re allowed to pull on the baggy green.
You want the X Factor instead? Tune into channel 7 on Monday nights.
Mickey Arthur is claiming that Michael Clarke called Shane Watson ‘a cancer’ on the Australian cricket team. The label would be more fitting of his mate, the most arrogantly entitled player in world cricket, ‘Davey’ Warner.
He should be kept as far away from the current test environment as possible. Ideally, he won’t feature in the current series, which would lead to plenty of time for reflection.
I wonder if Kid Rock has any songs that can help him do it?