‘Never again’: David Warner to relive Indian nightmare
Diary entries have been revealed that show the lows David Warner sunk to while struggling on tours of India.
Cricket can be a game of massive highs and cavernous lows, and one man that has experienced them all is David Warner.
The 101-Test great has scored 25 Test centuries at an average of 46.20, but he has been criticised for his performances that aren’t on bouncy, pacy Australian pitches at home.
He averages 58.39 at home, and 32.78 away from home, and particularly has struggled in the ragging turners on the Indian subcontinent.
Watch BBL12. Every game live and ad-break free during play on Kayo. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
In India, he averages 24.25 with a high score of 71, a far cry from the 19 centuries he has plundered at home.
New footage can reveal the toll that Warner’s struggles in Asia have had on him, with the boy from Matraville in Sydney’s eastern suburbs speaking for the second season of the Amazon documentary series The Test.
Previously nicknamed ‘the Bull’ for his domineering persona and aggressive batsmanship, Warner opened up to the cameras in a way audiences and fans haven’t seen before.
He reveals he keeps a journal, and reflects back on one particular diary, dating back to the first two Tests of the now infamous “Sandpapergate” series in South Africa.
“Some good memories and some not so good memories,” Warner recalls.
“It’s got a lot of good positive affirmations that I stand by every day.”
Camera shots of the diary in question, however, reveal some less philosophical thoughts at times.
One entry, dated to August 27 2017, reads “I am done. 1 game to go and never again touring subcontinent.
“Too much stress on my mind that I don’t need.”
Warner had been trapped in front late on the first day’s play by Bangladesh’s Mehedy Hasan Miraz in the 1st Test at Chattogram, departing for just eight.
It followed a difficult Test tour of India in February and March of that year for Warner, where he averaged 24.12, only passing 50 once.
His struggles against Test teams in the subcontinent weren’t limited to the mainland either, with Warner describing his memories of 2016 tour of Sri Lanka as “f**king s**t”.
“Memories were horrible, he recalled.
“I was getting beaten both sides of the bat with the spinning ball.”
Documentary footage shows Warner in the final episode of the series getting trapped in front again, this time by spinner Ramesh Mendis in Galle.
“I f**king keep missing those!” he exclaims.
Whilst the red ball in India will be a challenge for Warner in the upcoming Test tour, he has found it a happy hunting ground in limited-overs cricket.
In 2017, the year Warner declared he would “never again” tour the subcontinent, he won the Orange Cap as the leading run scorer in the Indian Premier League, and averaged 49 in the ODI series against India immediately preceding the Bangladesh tour.
He has since travelled to Pakistan and Sri Lanka, averaging 33.80, with two fifties in five innings and a high score of 64, and 21.33 respectively.
‘Big snake cracks’: Curator’s call on first Test pitch
The wicket for the first Test in Perth could still be hard and bouncy but will be missing something pitches in the west normally produce.
Maxi suffers Big Bash blow
A fresh hurdle is obstructing Glenn Maxwell’s return to Test cricket, as his BBL side sweats on his fitness following scan results.
‘Hard to see your dad like that’: Community rallies for sporting stalwart
Six weeks on from his pancreatic cancer diagnosis, Michael Johnstone’s family and friends are still coming to grips with the battle he faces. Yet, they are preparing to put emotion to one side to raise awareness about the “insidious” disease.