David Warner isn’t retiring in England but has named a favoured replacement

David Warner will play his last Test in England but it won’t be his last Test, although he knows who should replace him when he does retire.

David Warner has thrown his support behind Matt Renshaw as his opening replacement but squashed talk that will be as soon as the end of the Ashes.

The veteran Australian batter rubbished suggestions he and Steve Smith were going to retire after the final Ashes Test at The Oval, calling the claims a joke.

Warner, 36, had flagged pre-series that he would retire after the Sydney Test next January, if he was still in the team, but wasn’t making any calls before then.

“I don’t have an announcement,” Warner said of the final showdown at The Oval.

“For me it’s about trying to work hard in the nets as I did today and if selected, go out there and play and try and win an Ashes series.

“I came here last time and it was a draw. Hopefully, we can go away with a series win and then that’ll be a fitting Ashes campaign for us and a fitting tour over here in England with the World Test Championship as well.

David Warner isn’t retiring just yet. Picture: Ryan Pierse/Getty Images

“We’re here as a group and we’re united and hopefully we can achieve that.”

Warner conceded he’d failed to deliver with the bat during the series, having averaged 25.12 with a top score of 66.

But he also believes he has batted with the right attacking approach and still felt in a “good space” to deliver with opening partner Usman Khawaja.

“I’ve probably left a few out there, but in saying that I’ve played a lot better than what I did last time,” he said.

“I’m looking to score. I’ve had a couple of unlucky dismissals and then been dismissed where I’ve tried to negate the swing or the seam and it’s caught the outside edge of the bat.

“So for me, I feel like I’m in a good space, contributed well, and as a batting unit, we’re all about partnerships. And I think the partnerships that we’ve had in key moments of this series so far have actually worked very well for us as a team.

“(What‘s left to achieve) is not really part of my thinking. I am feeling good at the moment, so no dramas here.”

Matt Renshaw could be back opening the batting with Usman Khawaja. Picture: David Gray / AFP

With his retirement looming, Warner nominated Renshaw, not Marcus Harris who is with the Ashes squad, as a “great replacement” for him when he moves on.

“I’ve always said Matt Renshaw is a very good player,” Warner said.

“He can play both formats quite easily. He‘s tall. He’s exactly like Haydos (Matt Hayden). We spoke about him in the early part of his career.

“I‘ve always felt and held him in high regard as a very good player. He’s worked on his technique. He’s been in and out of the squads, and I think he’ll be a great replacement.”