David Warner’s position within the Aussie side has been under the spotlight after the opener’s twin failures in the defeat by England in the third Ashes Test but new footage suggests he might avoid being dropped. Warner managed just five runs at Headingly, trimming his series average to 23.5. He was dismissed by nemesis Stuart Broad in both innings via nicks to the slips.
The left-hander has now been removed by the England quick 17 times in his career, prompting pundits to ask whether he is worth the risk of retaining even with a 2-1 lead over England in the five-Test series.
With all-rounder Cameron Green expected to be fit for the fourth Test at Old Trafford on Wednesday, Warner could be squeezed out if selectors opt to retain Marsh after his superb century in the first innings of Australia’s three-wicket defeat.
The trio were the only ones facing the new ball, fuelling speculation that Head, Marsh or Green won’t be moved up the order. Alongside the video Sundaresan wrote: ‘Interesting that David Warner, Marcus Harris and Usman Khawaja were the only batters to face the new ball three days out from the fourth Test.
Footage posted by cricket reporter Bharat Sundaresan showed Warner, Marcus Harris and Usman Khawaja all facing the new ball in the nets at training over the weekend.
‘Should seem likely that they stick with the Warner-Khawaja combination on top.’ Former Australia captain Michael Clarke believes Warner is Australia’s ‘biggest issue’ going into the crucial fourth Test.
Australia captain Pat Cummins declined to guarantee Warner would retain his place in the side for Old Trafford, while saying it would be hard to drop Marsh. ‘You keep all options open,’ Cummins told reporters.
‘The number one issue is you’ve stuck with Warner, given him every opportunity, and [Stuart] Broad´s still got his number,’ Clarke said on Sky Sports Radio. Warner has set out his ideal retirement plans, announcing earlier in the tour that he hopes the Sydney clash against Pakistan in the home summer will be his swan song in Test cricket.
‘We’ve got nine or 10 days now, we´ll take a deep breath, we’ll go away for a few days. ‘But you know, everyone comes back into it, Greeny should be fit for Manchester, Josh [Hazlewood] will be back in there as well. ‘We should have a full roster.’
