Australia opener David Warner’s Test form has been a cause of concern for quite a while. He featured in 11 Tests last year, scoring 571 runs at an average of 30.05 with one hundred and two half-centuries. The southpaw averages a meagre 12.71 from five Tests in 2023 so far.
Amid the scrutiny, former Australia skipper Ricky Ponting has extended support to Warner, expecting the left-hander to be back among runs after showing hints of his best form during the ICC World Test Championship final against India and in the first innings of the Ashes Test against England at Edgbaston.
While Warner scored 43 and 1 in the two innings of the WTC final against India at The Oval, he made 9 before getting bowled by Stuart Broad in the Ashes 2023 opener.
"I thought he looked really good in the first innings of the WTC Final; the 40-odd he made there, he played really well," Ponting said in the latest episode of The ICC Review.
"And even though he made nine in the first innings here, the way he actually started his innings was the best I have seen him start in two years of Test cricket. So it is still there. I think the fact that he was not able to score as freely as he would have wanted at the start of that innings played a part in him playing the shot that he did."
"But there is no doubt the second innings is an important one for him - not just for his career's sake, but it is going to be a big innings as far as this game and this series goes. If he starts the same way that he started in the first innings, then I think he will make some runs," he added.
Earlier this month, David Warner declared that he plans to retire from Test cricket during the upcoming Australian summer.
The ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2024 is also on Warner’s agenda, but the 36-year-old wishes to quit Test cricket following the Sydney Test against Pakistan in January next year.
"You've got to score runs. I've always said the (2024) World Cup would probably be my final game," Warner told reporters.
"I probably owe it to myself and my family - if I can score runs here and continue to play back in Australia - I can definitely say I won't be playing that West Indies series.
"If I can get through this (WTC final and ensuing Ashes campaign) and make the Pakistan series I will definitely finish up then."
