David Warner’s manager, James Erskine, hit back at former Australia pacer Mitchell Johnson, who questioned why the left-handed batter is getting a Test farewell despite his struggles in red-ball cricket and accused him of not owning up to his role in the ball-tampering scandal. Warner stated his intentions to retire from the Test format earlier this year, stating that he would be keen to bring his career in red-ball format to an end at his home ground, the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG). Writing for The West Australian, Johnson said that Warner’s current form and his involvement in the ball-tampering scandal, also known as the ‘Sandpaper Gate’ do not justify him getting a “hero’s send-off”.
“As we prepare for David Warner’s farewell series, can somebody please tell me why? Why does a struggling Test opener get to nominate his own retirement date? And why does a player at the centre of one of the biggest scandals in Australian cricket history warrant a hero’s send-off?” Johnson wrote.
Erskine hit back at Johnson, stating that his questioning Warner’s selection isn’t logical and saying, as quoted from The Sydney Morning Herald, “Let me tell you, anyone can get a headline. The fact is [Warner’s selection] is just logical. The three [replacement] candidates will be [Matthew] Renshaw, [Cameron] Bancroft – who has played pretty well in the Sheffield Shield – and [Marcus] Harris. Now they’ve all had spells opening the batting for Australia.”
He further went on to point out that the trio of Marcus Harris, Cameron Bancroft and Matthew Renshaw had managed to claim just one century between them in 38 Test outings and their combined average was somewhere in the mid-20s.
Hew backed Warner’s performance, stating that he scored a half-century during his last Test innings in the Ashes and was the leading run-scorer for the Baggy Greens in the ODI World Cup, Erskine.
“David is in good form. Thank God Mitchell Johnson isn’t a Test selector,” Erskine said.
Australia’s First Test squad:Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Marsh, Lance Morris, Steve Smith, Mitch Starc, and David Warner.
Pakistan squad for Australia Tests: Shan Masood (captain), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi.
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