Cricket World Cup 2019 | I Thrive on People Booing Me: David Warner

Australia opener David Warner believes it is well within the rights of fans to boo him and Steve Smith if they want to, stating that it merely motivates him.

"People have the right to come in here, they pay their dollars and if they want to boo us, they can. I thrive on that stuff, I love it,” Warner told reporters at Lord’s. "I went out to the corner (of the ground, while fielding) there and copped it. At the end of the day you have to smile - they pay their money to come and watch us and we are grateful for them to come and sit down and watch us.

"We try and put on a good show for everyone. I always just smile. I take my glasses off and look everyone in the eye and just smile. That is what is about, I am living the dream. I am out here at Lord's, playing cricket for my country."

Warner has been in fine form during the World Cup, scoring 500 runs and playing a key role in Australia’s run to the semi-finals. The southpaw revealed that a recent training exercise – one which sees him wear headphones while facing fast bowlers in the nets – has helped relax him and get his tempo right.

"Why do I wear headphones at training? Well, I was waiting for that. It is something for me to relax my mind. In the last 12 months, I just did a lot of different stuff. I did a whole session with my headphones on a couple of times and it really relaxed me at training.

"When you have guys coming at you at 150kph, you don't want to be listening to any external noise around the training sessions. So I just sing along to whatever top 40 (song) is on my iWatch. It is a bit of a tempo thing, it is calming me down while I am out there."

But away from the rigours of the World Cup, Warner is preparing for another challenge – becoming a father for the third time. His wife Candice is set to give birth on Sunday, the day after Australia’s game against New Zealand.

"I'm very excited, I can't wait. I think it's a bit of a relief for the wife actually. It's been a long time. The last couple of days have been a bit tiring for her but we're excited as a family. I just love being a father. I've got a great, supportive wife, a great family base at home as well. We've got great support around us, the guys here have been fantastic and they’ve really got around me at this important time for my family.

"But my wife, as selfless as she is, cricket's the priority and winning games for Australia and that's what we're trying to do."

Given that his third daughter will be born in London, she will likely qualify to hold a British passport. When quizzed on the prospect of his daughter playing for England, Warner laughed. "I think there might be a bit of a fight there but you never know!"