Cricket World Cup 2023: David Warner calls out backing up batters after repeated Mitchell Starc Mankad warnings

David Warner says he wouldn’t have given as many Mankad warnings as his teammate Mitchell Starc did on Monday as the Aussie opener called out batters who continually back up too far.

David Warner has suggested batters who fail to heed Mankad warnings are acting with “arrogance” after Mitchell Starc twice threatened to run out Sri Lanka’s Kusal Perera for backing up too far at the nonstriker’s end in Australia’s World Cup win on Monday.

Perera was out of his crease in the first over of the match in Lucknow when Starc stopped just before his delivery stride to warn the opener that he was encroaching. Starc could have legitimately removed the bails and sent Perea on his way, but opted against enacting the contentious method of dismissal.

Starc looked to repeat the dose later in the innings, pulling up before bowling, but this time Perera was safe.

Mitchell Starc repeatedly warned Kusal Perera for over-backing up. Picture: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

Australian opener Warner said he was bemused by Starc’s preparedness to expend energy only to warn a batter, as he has done previously in international cricket.

But Warner added that batters who repeatedly strayed at the nonstriker’s end were acting with apparent impunity.

“I‘m like, if you’re gonna do it five or six times you’re wasting your run-in,” Warner said.

“So I‘m trying to conserve my energy if I’m running. Don’t do an extra five sprints. But Starcy is big on that. To be fair like if you warn someone you think that they wouldn’t do it and that’s just a perfect example of just ignorance and arrogance in a way, just not listening.

“Like sometimes it is people out of habit just doing that. I remember (former Test opener) Ed Cowan used to do it all the time without even noticing. And he was still horrendous between wickets, even though he had three metre advantage, still standing there in one position. So it was like sometimes you just don‘t think about it as a batsman. Like you’re not trying to pinch a run.”

Starc last year threatened to Mankad South Africa’s Theunis de Bruyn who was backing up during the Boxing Day Test.

At the time, Starc said he would be prepared to go through with the act.

“I gave him a couple of warnings. If he wants to keep doing it, I‘ll take him,” Starc said.

Originally published as Cricket World Cup 2023: David Warner calls out backing up batters after repeated Mitchell Starc Mankad warnings