Australia’s lowest Test match innings total at home since 1984 began with combative opener David Warner fishing for a loose outside-off delivery that he would nick through to the keeper.
South Africa rolled the hosts for 85 as Australia also recorded the lowest innings total at Bellerive in Test history.
Warner’s rash first innings dismissal came after he was run out by a miraculous Temba Bavuma in Perth last week while attempting a daring single.
It would be very easy to cast an eye over the two cavalier dismissals and heap blame on the Queenslander amid what’s come as a disastrous start to the summer for the baggy green.
Criticism of Warner’s shot has received just as much intensity as the wild attempt of cover drive, with Ricky Ponting and Chris Rogers both expressing disappointment in the opener.
Given the green Bellerive deck, overcast skies, wayward delivery and the fact a solitary over hadn’t been bowled in the match, Warner indeed flirted with danger in taking a slash at the wide Vernon Philander delivery.
Wind back the clock to the 2012-13 home summer, however, and you will see a pivotal moment in Warner’s rise.
In what was the last time South Africa toured Australia for a Test series, he produced a trademark Warner innings, pounding the Proteas in Adelaide on his way to 119 runs from just 112 balls. A colossal 88 of those runs came from boundaries and he finished with a strike rate of 106.25.
After almost 12 months of underperformance, one of the world’s most devastating opening batsmen had rediscovered his element.
At the Gabba the Test prior, he tentatively felt for a well-pitched Dale Steyn delivery and fell in the slips for four runs from 15 balls.
This came after recording an uncharacteristic strike rate of just 54.11 in the previous three-Test series against the West Indies in April.
Warner’s renewed approach in Adelaide, which saw him produce his first Test century in his last nine visits to the crease, set the precedent for his future at the top of Australia’s order.
Ever since, he has compiled a Test record possessing the hallmarks of a player likely to retire as an Australian cricketing great. With an average of 48.98 from 55 Tests, Warner is well on his way.
Positivity at the crease – aggression at his scintillating best – has given the opener method to his madness.
He sends loose balls to the fence and works tirelessly to nab one or two off the good balls.
This relentless desire to keep the runs ticking over at such a healthy rate places mountainous pressure on bowlers, creates nightmares for the captain in setting his field and gives himself the confidence that has fed his near-5000 Test runs.
An additional advantage of Warner’s electric approach to batting is that it can put Australia in a commanding position very early in the match.
He has on a litany of occasions been the architect of a 400-plus innings total, and because of the lightning rate at which he churns out his runs leaves the Australian bowlers with ample time to take the required 20 wickets to win the match.
At the WACA just last week, he struck 97 runs from just 100 balls before the first fall of wicket fell at 158. Unfortunately for the hosts, losing ten wickets for just 86 runs made waste of his superb knock.
Of course with batsmen like Warner, we are not always going to see a pretty dismissal. Due to the way he plays the game, chasing a wide delivery like he did yesterday is always going to look ugly.
However, just as was the case with Virender Sehwag, Matthew Hayden and Kevin Pietersen, the good simply has to be taken with the bad.
On any other day, Warner probably would have hammered that Philander delivery through cover for four to put the South African bowling attack on notice. In such a case everyone would be singing his praises.
The focus of yesterday’s historic batting capitulation should not be Warner’s desperate slash.
Instead, the criticism should be fired at anyone, other than Steve Smith, in Australia’s top seven, as opposed to arguably the best opening batsman in the world. Very minimal movement of the front foot brought a lot of the Australian batsmen undone.
To return to the stats, with Warner we are looking at a batsman with the third-highest Test strike rate in history out of players with an average of 45-plus. His strike rate of 77.74 is only eclipsed by Sehwag’s (82.23) and Gilchrist’s (81.95).
Send it to the fence, Warner.
steve
Guest
throw away wickets? have you not watched all the Australian batsmen of recent throw away their wickets... his shot was poor no doubt.. but there are much greater problems for the Australians at present than Warner's occasional 'brain explosion'
Harvey
Guest
Warner's immature dismissal continues to send the selectors clues as to why Maxwell and Warner in the same team would never be a good idea. With the way things are in the batting, they don't need two batsmen to have brain explosions and throw wickets away.
AREH
Roar Guru
Those numbers really don't look too impressive outside of Aus and SA, granted. But the guy still managed to scrap five half-centuries in the UK last year; and there were others in the top six (Voges, M.Marsh, Clarke) who made significantly less contributions.
rogue marine
Guest
this has to be one of the most well-informed comments I've come across on roar. good on you.
Broken=hearted Toy
Guest
Neither do I
Perry Bridge
Guest
Warner showed an inability to adapt and respect the conditions and to assess the required approach. It was a 'leave' pitch/session. The only players to prosper did this and did it well - and even then the definition of prosper thus far is getting past 30. It's hard work. To play that shot in the first over in these conditions was hopelessly foolhardy. However - to a degree - can't blame Warner for the manner of the dismissal of others. Burns is all at sea, Khawaja perhaps got a good one but handled it somewhat casually. It wasn't really until the tail who were playing harder at the ball with their hands - attempted drives - so, the manner of Warner's dismissal wasn't the contagion however it was the lack of intent to work hard that was on display that didn't help the cause.
Frank Rossitano
Guest
Well Doogs, when David Warner learns to score runs on pitches where the ball deviates off the seam, and doesn't just hit through the line on pitches that sit up beautifully for his halfway-between-horizontal-and-vertical strokes, maybe he'll have earned a more flattering epithet. It may be trite but it applies to Warner almost perfectly. I also agree with John below, Khawaja and Burns looked uncomfortable. Thankfully Smith looked like he'd learned from the 2015 Ashes. He was moving his feet decisively and playing late. I'm sure they'll bat much better in the 2nd innings though - Fergie for 50 odd and Smith for a big one.
Joel
Guest
dont see why anyone is defending him for that shot..
John Erichsen
Roar Guru
Warner certainly prefers batting on home and Aussie-like pitches but he isn't the only Aussie test batsman who regularly struggles when the ball is moving around. Khawaja and Burns, struggled in Sri Lanka and didn't have many answers yesterday. Our top order were embarrassing in England except for the two tests played on drier pitches. 11 collapses of 10 wickets for less than 100 runs in the last 5 years, are not on the shoulders of one player. Don't get me wrong. It was a dumb, rash shot from an experienced player and vice-captain who appeared to have taken more notice of his ego than the pitch or weather conditions. It wasn't, however the only brain fail yesterday. Ferguson's run out, for example?
John Erichsen
Roar Guru
To be honest, recent series would support the use of that phrase, despite you finding it boring, for many in our national side as being extremely accurate. I expect people will move on from it, when our batsmen give us reason to support the thought that they are more than that. Out of interest, what term or phrase would you prefer to see? Others coming to mind are "mentally soft" or "resilience deficient". Again, these phrases are not describing Warner alone, but many in our batting line-up. Warner does seem to be the batting pin-up boy though.
John Erichsen
Roar Guru
Warner is not to blame for the team's collapse, but he should be accountable for playing such a poor shot in the bowler conditions, so early in his innings. The old "he's aggressive and needs to play his natural game" is nonsense as Allan Border has recently eluded to. Border suggests, and it makes lots of sense, that playing your natural game and respecting pitch and weather conditions should never be mutually exclusive. Warner's disregard of the green top and overcast skies, perfect for moving the ball about, was irresponsible and one hopes the vice-captain would place higher value on his wicket and shielding his team mates from that moving ball in the future. On that pitch, a good bowler will get wickets with good pills. It's mindless to gift him a big wicket for a poor delivery, with such a reckless and rash shot.
Amrit
Roar Guru
I would better not judge Warner for his poor shot in the first innings-one bad innings does not undermine the fact that he gives Australia regular starts at a quick pace, which is so essential to get the winning margins If you say his dismissal triggered the collapse, well no, it was the Philander line and length
doogs
Guest
Thank you for the averages. Appreciated. The use of the term "flat track bully" is one of the most boring terms I have heard and it's time to move on from it. Thanks
doogs
Guest
Maybe so. Did not see England hanging around much once the first wicket fell in Bangladesh. Was it not 10 wickets for 60? What do they have between their ears? As for that, Warner recently captained Australia for 4 wins out of 4 in a period where they are not winning. So he must have something between the ears
Frank Rossitano
Guest
Warner is a flat track bully. He averages 59.5 in Australia and 90 in South Africa [where pitches are most like Australia], but only 37 over 15 innings in England, 25 over 14 innings in India and Sri Lanka, and 26 over 10 innings in the West Indies. Those numbers are quite average, but no one seems willing to admit it. It's symptomatic of the wider failure of Australian coaching that the so-called 'best opener in the world' can't adequately play the moving or turning ball.
JohnnoMcJohnno
Roar Rookie
Since when has David Warner been a Queenslander? In any case, it was a rubbish shot from the most experienced opener in the team, and the vice captain no less. In conditions that everyone knew were going to be difficult. And with your team already one down in the series. I'm gob-smacked you're defending him.
Timmuh
Roar Guru
True enough. Both Warner and Maxwell appear to have IQs lower than their batting averages.
Lachie
Guest
Warner has being dismissed three times this series in silly fashion. A terrible attempted cut shot in the first innings in Perth, a needless risky run when trying to save the test match leading to a run out and a terrible swipe outside off-stump in the first over a test match. How is Maxwell continuously scrutinized for his reckless stroke-play yet not recognized for his match winning abilities, yet with Warner it's "oh that's the way he plays, let him be aggressive." Let's be consistent.
John
Guest
It was a rubbish shot from Warner but other blokes in the batting lineup need to step up! We can't just rely on Warner and Smith every game.
danwain
Guest
Let's not blame Warner because he is the best opener in the world? How does that logic work, they are all equally responsibility, I would argue the vice captain and best opener in the world has more responsibility then most...