David Warner stunning turnaround in public popularity as fans back him for ODI captaincy
Cricket Australia has not forgiven David Warner, but the public has, with numbers proving the controversial opener has pulled a complete turnaround in public opinion.
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Cricket Australia may not have forgiven David Warner, but the Australian public has.
News Corp ran an online poll (below) following Aaron Finch’s retirement, asking the question: ‘Who should be named as Australia’s next ODI captain?’
The fact Warner has polled the majority of votes with 31 per cent of the more than 2,200 punters who had their say, is significant.
Steve Smith and Alex Carey both polled 23 per cent, ahead of Pat Cummins (16 per cent) and Mitchell Marsh (7 per cent), so the tide isn’t necessarily overwhelming in Warner’s favour.
But it suggests a high proportion of the Australian cricket public have long moved on from Sandpapergate, because had the same vote been run three years ago, Warner would have polled in single digits.
While there would no doubt still be pockets of objection voiced on social media if Warner had his lifetime leadership ban overturned and he was appointed Australia’s white ball captain, the poll numbers suggest it wouldn’t be the storm of controversy CA have feared.
The public sentiment was similar after Tim Paine’s resignation last summer, when Smith actually polled a higher percentage of votes from a News Corp online poll than Cummins.
At Adelaide Oval when Smith took the reins as captain for a one-off Test, the crowd reaction was almost non-existent in that punters simply didn’t see it as the seismic moment administrators and the media might have imagined it could be.
There are plenty of other factors involved in the white ball captaincy debate, and it’s up to selectors whether they feel Warner – who is a month older than Finch – is the man to lead the team to the 2023 ODI World Cup.
But given Cummins is a fast bowler already burdened with the Test captaincy, Alex Carey only plays ODIs and not T20s, Marsh has had his injury issues and Smith has indicated he’s non-plussed about the job, it’s clear this is a complicated puzzle where every candidate has an asterix next to his name.
Is it fair for Warner’s credentials as a successful tactical white ball captain to not even be considered due to a lifetime ban many in cricket feel is out of step with the way the game has moved on since 2018?
Sandpapergate was five and a half years ago and is ancient history in the minds of most.
There aren’t many people who hold grudges for that long and most Australian sports fans believe in redemption and second chances. People feel Warner and Smith did their time with unprecedented year-long bans and the loss of millions of dollars in earnings for an offence that for other countries warranted a one-match suspension from the ICC.
Not having Warner available to be selected as Sydney Thunder captain in the Big Bash at the very least seems counter-productive for Australian cricket.
Warner told News Corp on Tuesday at the Kayo Sports launch that he believes he was singled out for a life ban from CA all those years ago because the board held grudges against him from the ugly 2017 pay dispute between administrators and players.
He has a fair argument. The relationship between Warner and the board at that time was toxic.
When Cricket Australia banned Steve Smith from leadership for two years, it was said public opinion would be a key factor in whether he was ever welcomed back to a leadership position – which he was last year in the Test vice-captaincy.
And the new CA board might be well-served now to consider the sentiment of punters again when it meets with Warner in the coming weeks to discuss overturning his lifetime ban.
Warner’s shock claim over lifetime leadership ban
David Warner has claimed that his strong stance in cricket’s infamous pay war was the reason why he copped a lifetime leadership ban, as he prepares to meet with CA chiefs about overturning the sanction.
Pat Cummins is set to be offered the ODI captaincy in the wake of Aaron Finch’s retirement, but if he feels he has enough on his plate as Test skipper, Warner believes he could do a strong job for Australia as a leader at next year’s 50-over World Cup.
First and foremost though, Warner would need to have his controversial life ban from ever holding a leadership position in Australian cricket overturned, and is set to meet with CA chief executive Nick Hockley in the coming weeks for an open discussion about the matter.
Leading cricketing figures including Cummins, Finch and players’ bosses Todd Greenberg and Shane Watson have argued strongly that the life sentence is unfair and counterproductive for the game.
The make-up of the CA board has changed almost entirely since the Sandpapergate scandal of 2018, and one of the major frustrations Warner wants to stress to current directors, is his belief that the reason he was singled out for punitive punishment was due to grudges held from him being the voice of the players during the ugly 2017 pay dispute where relationships across the game were damaged.
“Unfortunately a lot of the events before 2018 were with the board – the MOU stuff and all that,” Warner told News Corp at the Kayo summer launch.
“ … Things got over and above in terms of more than just Cape Town. There was more to it.
“I think that’s where my decision – the penalty that was handed down – was more of stuff that was happening before that.
“ … I think at the end of the day it’s about what questions do they (the CA board) want to ask me.
“That’s where the conversation starts and then we can lead from there. It’s almost a completely new board from when 2018 happened.
“I would be interested to see and hear what their thoughts are.
“I haven’t had any conversations at all (about taking over ODI captaincy). Any opportunity to captain would be a privilege. But from my end, there’s a lot of water to go under the bridge – to have those conversations with Cricket Australia.”
Finch endorses Warner for captaincy
Aaron Finch has strongly endorsed David Warner as a prime candidate to take over as ODI skipper, calling on Cricket Australia to overturn his lifetime leadership ban.
Test captain Pat Cummins has also said “nothing is off the table” when it comes to any interest he might have in Australia’s now vacant 50-over captaincy.
Australia is facing an extremely challenging decision in replacing Finch, not least of all because of his fine legacy as an underrated statesman of the national team following the Sandpapergate scandal.
But in choosing Finch’s replacement following his retirement on Saturday, selectors and the board will be forced to weigh up the past, present and future in planning for the 2023 World Cup in India, with Cummins, Warner, Smith, Mitchell Marsh and Alex Carey all shaping as deeply intriguing candidates for the ODI hot seat.
Finch – who will continue as Twenty20 captain for next month’s home World Cup – declared the Sandpapergate scandal should not impact Warner or Steve Smith’s claims to succeed him, with Cricket Australia’s board now under renewed pressure to finally commit to a formal review of Warner’s controversial ban.
“I think CA I think are revisiting what that looks like. He’s someone I’ve played under a few times for Australia when he’s had the opportunity to captain, and he’s been fantastic. He’s an unbelievable tactical captain and someone who at the time the guys loved playing under,” Finch told Triple M.
“I’m not 100 per cent sure of what CA’s position is on it. But would I like to see it overturned?
“(Yes) … he’s someone who, you do your time and he’s well and truly done that I think.”
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