Injured Warner’s Test future in doubt as Renshaw, Head step in

Delhi: David Warner’s Test future is in limbo after an extraordinary double whammy in the second Test – a concussion diagnosis and a fractured arm suffered from his rugged innings on the opening day.

A street fighter who grew up in a Matraville housing commission flat, Warner loves a backs-to-the-wall scrap, but there will be no second-innings shot at redemption in Delhi. Fitness issues aside, his fate is now in the hands of selectors.

Mohammed Shami celebrates taking the wicket of David Warner.Credit: Getty

Opening for just the third time in his 146-game first-class career, Travis Head would have made a strong first impression on George Bailey’s panel with the type of rollicking knock – 39 off 40 balls – selectors have craved against the new ball in India.

Should the dashing South Australian southpaw convert his cameo performance into a lead role on the third day, selectors will find it difficult to recast Warner in these conditions.

“I’m really happy to see him out there competing the way he is at the moment, I thought he was absolutely exceptional,” Nathan Lyon said of his great mate Head.

Head, though, would be unlikely to open in the Ashes, leaving open a potential Test lifeline for Warner to play in a seventh Ashes series.

Warner was withdrawn from the second Test on Saturday morning under the International Cricket Council’s concussion protocols; he was replaced by Matthew Renshaw.

It was later revealed Warner had batted for much of his innings with a small hairline fracture to his left elbow, one of two blows he copped during India paceman Mohammed Siraj’s fiery spell with the new ball.

Warner top-edged an attempted pull shot to a 139.5km/h delivery from Siraj onto the grill of the helmet to the left side of his face. He was seen by team doctor Leigh Golding and checked several times on the field, but failed SCAT5 and CogSport tests back at the team hotel after play.

The fracture would not have prevented him from batting in the second innings, according to a source with knowledge of the situation, but that became irrelevant after his concussion diagnosis.

Despite Lyon’s claim that medical staff believe he can recover from his arm injury with a short break, it would test all of Warner’s recuperative powers and pain tolerance for him to be fit in less than a fortnight’s time.

Even if Warner can overcome the fracture, he must recover sufficiently from his head knock to pass Cricket Australia’s concussion protocols, then convince selectors he remains their best option to partner Usman Khawaja at the top of the order.

It would be a cruel way for one of Australia’s modern greats to bow out of the baggy green, but elite sport can be brutal.

His former opening partner Marcus Harris felt the pain last year after Khawaja made himself undroppable with twin centuries in Sydney as a replacement for Travis Head, who had COVID-19. Harris was dumped for the following match, just two games after a vital 76 on a testing MCG pitch.

In the 2019 Ashes, Marnus Labuschagne saved the Lord’s Test after replacing Steve Smith as the concussion substitute then booked his berth for the rest of the series with scores of 74 and 80 in the epic third Test at Headingley. Khawaja was dropped after Smith was cleared to play the fourth Test.

Cricket Australia’s concussion protocols do not dictate a mandatory period out of the game, but Warner must be able to complete staged physical activity and pass SCAT5 and CogSport tests to be cleared to play.

Smith returned to the field for a tour game against Derbyshire in the 2019 Ashes tour 12 days after his frightening hit from Jofra Archer. A similar timeframe for Warner would have him available for the third Test.

In the midst of lengthy form slump, Warner is also at risk of losing his place on performance. Warner is averaging 26.39 in 14 Tests since the start of last year, with just three scores over 50.

“You’ve still got to produce, even though he’s built up a lot of coupons,” Border said on Fox Cricket. “All the talk would’ve been about how he copes with the spin bowlers in India. Everyone is vulnerable. You’ve got to keep producing. It’s just looking like he’s a yard behind the ball to me.”

It includes a double century in his 100th Test, in Melbourne, at a time when his place was under question.

On that occasion, he overcame express-paced quick Anrich Nortje, but similar challenges await in England against James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Jofra Archer and co. Broad had a stranglehold over Warner in the last Ashes series there, dismissing him seven times in a horror series where he made just 95 runs.

Border cautioned about too much talk regarding Warner’s retirement.

“You can’t see him playing the next one, even with the protocols for a concussion, that’s the other one as well,” Border said.

“A double whammy like that? I’ve never heard of that before.”

Later, Border added: “There will be a lot of questions, but I wouldn’t be rushing him into retirement yet.

“Wait and see how it all unfolds from now. If Renshaw does well, that would be the perfect scenario but let’s just wait – don’t write him off just yet.”

News, results and expert analysis from the weekend of sport sent every Monday. Sign up for our Sport newsletter.