Former England captain Nasser Hussain urged Australian team management to persist with struggling opener David Warner when the two teams meet in the fourth Ashes 2023 Test in Manchester from July 19 onwards.
After a good performance at Lord's, where he scored a fifty in the first innings, things quickly unraveled for Warner in the third Test as he was dismissed twice by his arch-nemesis Stuart Broad.
The left-hander has made just 141 runs in 3 Tests so far in Ashes 2023 and after Australia's loss in Leeds Test, questions have been raised on the opener being assured of a place in the starting lineup for the game in Manchester.
Australia captain Pat Cummins said that they will be keeping their options open for the match, but Hussain thinks that the Aussies may have to stick with the 36-year-old.
"It's the decision of David Warner. It is a tricky thing. I think if they'd won here [third Test at Headingley], and they had won the Ashes, it would have been time to move on from David Warner, but now it's a live game, I think they need and have to play Warner,” Hussain said on Sky Sports.
He also spoke about who could replace Warner on the Australian side and open for them at Old Trafford.
"My point is you could play Cameron Green and Mitchell Marsh [all-rounders] and leave Warner out, but then who opens? You might have to move Labuschagne, or even Marsh opens in white-ball cricket at times, so he could do it. But it's a different challenge.
That's a specialist role: opening in Test match cricket. They'll have to think long and hard about who opens the batting at Old Trafford," said Hussain.
Australia leads the five-Test series 2-1.
