I've got to be honest, I thought we had seen the last of David Warner. Foundering amid scandal and lack of any good showings, the man was exiled to the Dark Continent, where I presumed he would continue to fail to impress, heralding his quiet departure from Test cricket. I presumed (hoped) the same thing would eventually happen to Phil Hughes before the blasted fellow made 86* at Trent Bridge.
But, O wondrous thing! After making 6 and 11 in succession against Zimbabwe, Warner defied all expectation and made a blazing 193 against South Africa A yesterday. This is the same David Warner whose last eight Test innings have been (going backwards): 8, 0, 2, 71, 26, 6, 23, 59, averaging at 23.50. Go figure. Yes those are his innings over the tour of India. Granted, South Africa A is not India, but any first-class 193 is a good 193, to my mind.
When it looked like David Warner was resolutely on the slow road out of the Test team, he goes and confounds us all by coming lip-smackingly close to making a first-class double century, with twenty-three fours and one six (which still leaves a respectable 71 runs made from running between the wickets). When our Test batsmen struggle to even make fifties, let alone hundreds, in the Ashes, David Warner's 193 suddenly makes him look tantalisingly attractive. Faith has been restored in the beleaguered fellow, and suddenly he isn't a liability who needs to be permanently rotated out of the team, but a prospective saviour of Australia's Ashes hopes.
Perhaps the best thing to do, after all, is stick with Warner. Invest in him, keep faith in him, develop him. The lad shows promise after all, and, eventually, he ought to come good. The same applies to Cowan, Khawaja, Smith, Watson and - dare I say it? - Hughes. Good Test sides are built on a cohort of strong, experienced, established players who know the game and, importantly, know each other. Look at the currently dominant Test sides: South Africa, India and, especially, England. All are built around a core of established, experienced players. As was Australia in our heyday. Continually chopping and changing a team in a desperate search for a better performer is no way to build a Test-winning side in the long term. Yet that is precisely what Australia is doing: groping around for new players in a wrong-headed attempt to build a strong team, rather than doing the hard yards in investing long-term in players. Stick with Warner and the rest, and be patient with them until they come good.
Australia are hoping, praying, grasping for anything - anyone - who can restore dignity to this tour, who can at the very least help Australia leave England not completely humiliated. David Warner returns to England ahead of the Third Test. It is very likely he will get a spot in the side. Let's just pray he can replicate his great feat against England.
