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David Warner
has admitted he needed the "kick up the bum" of being suspended and
ultimately dropped from Australia's Test side after his punch at Joe
Root in a Birmingham pub. Warner's ban over the incident cost him his
place in the first two Investec Tests at Trent Bridge and Lord's but he
is firmly back in contention for a recall in the third Test at Old
Trafford after his 193 during the ongoing match against South Africa A in Pretoria.
Warner was sent on the Australia A tour of Zimbabwe and South Africa
after being left out of the Trent Bridge Test as the Australian camp
sought a way to get him some game time following his suspension. His
punch at Root on a night out during the Champions Trophy ultimately led to the sacking of coach Mickey Arthur, but for Warner personally, losing his place in the national side after playing 19 consecutive Tests was a wake-up call.
"Sitting on the sidelines and copping that punishment and not being
selected it was a thing that I needed," Warner said from South Africa.
"I definitely needed a kick up the bum. It was my own fault the incident
that happened. My job was then to support our players, support the rest
of the group and do everything I could to help them prepare for the
games. I did that and I know the other guys on the tour did the same
thing. We've all been working very hard."
Warner's partnership with Ed Cowan at the top of Australia's Test order
appears to have been permanently split, with Cowan having been dropped
after the loss in Nottingham. If Warner returns at Old Trafford it will
likely be at No.6, although his heavy scoring against South Africa A -
193 from 226 deliveries - came at No.4.
Although his scoring rate was typically quick, Warner impressed by
surviving for more than five hours at the crease in Pretoria, against a
South Africa A attack boasting the extremely promising pace pairing of
Kyle Abbott and Marchant de Lange. His 193 was not his highest
first-class score but it was his longest stay at the crease in quite
some time, after a lean few months in all formats.
"I set myself a goal of wanting to bat three hours out there," Warner
said. "I batted an hour in Zimbabwe and I decided here I'd just come in
and be positive from the start and when the ball was there to hit, I hit
it. That's how I played and it came off.
"I hadn't really played for about 40 days so with no cricket under my
belt I was fortunate enough to be sent here and get some game time in. I
know I would have had to wait until after the first two Tests to get
any game time over there otherwise."
Had he stayed in England, Warner's first opportunity for some time in
the middle would have come in the tour match against Sussex, which
begins in Hove on Friday. Warner's innings means that Phillip Hughes and
Steven Smith especially will be under pressure to post decent scores
against Sussex in the lead-up to the Manchester Test.
One man who won't be scoring any runs in Sussex is Shane Watson,
who has stayed in London along with some other members of the squad to
train ahead of the third Test. Watson was the subject of a Twitter rant
from David Warner's brother Steve during the Lord's Test, but Warner
said he had nothing but support for Watson.
"A hundred percent. I get along with Shane very well," he said. "I
thoroughly enjoy batting with Shane, I know what he does for the team
and I know what a team player he is, not just on the field but in and
around the group how he supports the guys. He's fantastic."
Brydon Coverdale is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo. He tweets here
Feeds: Brydon Coverdale
© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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