In June this year, Australia opener David Warner made a profound statement. The 29-year-old said that he had reached that stage of his career where he wanted to take on more responsibility as a player and individual, concentrate on his batting and not be the ‘attack dog’ of Australian cricket anymore.
Warner had earned the reputation of being the aggressor in the Aussie camp, rubbing a whole bunch of opponents – from Joe Root to Virat Kohli, Jonathan Trott to AB de Villiers – the wrong way.
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Be it attempting to punch Root in a Birmingham bar or alleging that de Villiers tried to scruff up the ball using his gloves to generate reverse swing, Warner has found himself in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons.
It even forced Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland to say that Warner needs to stop looking for trouble. Because as they say, if you keep looking for trouble, you generally find it.
Warner revealed he wanted to put an end to his trouble-seeking ways. That’s not a poignant statement in itself but it came from a player who had made altercation part of his job profile.
Now that he has taken that ‘attack dog’ mentality out of his game, Warner has become a completely different player. The attacking mindset is still there, so is the audacity to go after the bowlers from the first session itself. But now there is a single-minded dedication to let his bat do the talking.
Since June, Warner’s Test scores have been 62, 17, 52, 38, 83, 2, 77, 0, 64, 85, 163, 116 and 253. That included an Ashes campaign were he was amongst the runs during a series dominated by bowlers. But the icing on the cake for him has been the ongoing Test series against New Zealand.
Warner smashed centuries in both innings of the Brisbane Test that set up a thumping win for the Aussies.
And in the second Test in Perth, Warner did one better, cracking 253 off just 286 deliveries. It was only the second instance of a Test opener scoring three centuries in as many innings twice, after the great Sunil Gavaskar.
His double century against the Kiwis was not only a testament to his ability to single handedly change the course of a Test within a few sessions, it also showed what he can achieve if he concentrates only on cricket.
Every player is built different. Some like to stay calm and not let the outside world influence their routine or style, like Rahul Dravid or Trott. They might be classed as boring, even selfish but they never cross the limits of acceptable behaviour and are highly respected.
Then there are those who thrive in a competitive environment and never shy away from a confrontation, like Kohli or Shoaib Akhtar. For some time, Warner too was a member of the second club, looking to win at all cost, but he is beginning to find the benefits of being part of the ‘stick-to-your job’ group.
It’s not a coincidence that Warner is now the vice-captain of the Australian team. He wants to be a positive influence and take the team forward by setting an example to the youngsters.
Warner has already tasted immense success as an Australian cricketer, having won the Ashes and the 50-over World Cup. Now that he has decided to only look for the next run and nothing else, cricket has become very simple for Warner and the sky is the limit for the diminutive left-hander.
