Australia opener David Warner says he has matured over the years and learned to look the other way when someone tries to get chatty with him on-field. And therefore, if someone from the Indian cricket team tries to provoke him during the upcoming tour, he will assess the situation and prefer to respond with his batting rather in words.
Warner has had his share of on-field exchanges with opposition players over the years including with India captain Virat Kohli.
“I’ve just recently turned 34, so my days are numbered, when you’re in the 30s. There’s obviously a risk element but there’s obviously a cricket smarts element to it as well,” Warner said ahead of the ODI series between India and Australia slated to get underway from November 27.
Warner says he will ignore if someone tries to engage with him during the contest.
“I’ll always draw from that mate. To try and get engaged, that’s the way they like to play as well,” he said. “We’re learning over time, trying not to engage in that. Probably try and reversing the effect by trying and ignoring it, trying to take it on board and using it against them by using your bat.”
He continued, “It’s probably something I’ve learnt over time. And you don’t know the effect it can have on your teammates as well. You’ve got to be a bit more humble in that respect.”
That change has also reflected on his batting. Earlier, Warner would go berserk from ball one but now, in his own words, he has changed into a calculated risk taker. “For myself, it’s about getting off to a good start and taking calculated risks in that middle-overs period if we’re talking about 50-over games,” he said.
“For me, it’s about making sure that I am batting as much as I can and at a good strike-rate as well. I think last year was probably the most disciplined I’ve batted in Test match cricket as well. I really took pride in the last 12-24 months, to apply that discipline and you keep learning as you get older…You’ve got to be on top of your game to be able to adapt to that.
Warner, 34, credits the discipline to fatherhood.
“…not get too aggressive or angry when the kids aren’t listening. For me, I am getting tested on and off the field. So, it’s about being calm and relaxed and trying to sum up the situation you’re playing in,” he said. “And making sure, you’re taking that right risk at the right time. I think last 12-24 months, I’ve been doing that quite well.”
“Make sure you’re not bringing people down with your emotions and keep trying to find ways to get better as a player and as a team player,” he added.
India will be without Rohit Sharma for the limited-overs leg of the tour and Warner reckons the tourist will feel his absence but they have enough firepower.
“…obviously he is a big piece of their team, that they are going to be missing, but they have got great in-form guys KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan and Mayank (Agarwal), these guys played in the IPL, so you have got guys who are in good touch,” he said.
India will be without Virat Kohli after the first Test in Adelaide and in his absence Ajinkya Rahane will likely lead the side in the remaining three Tests.
When asked how the thinking will change once Rahane takes over from Kohli, Warner said, “He’s (Rahane) calm and very measured in his approach. He’s got a very good cricket brain.
“…it’s like chalk and cheese with them two (Kolhi and Rahane) and as a player to try and engage him on the field, as we’re talking about engaging, and getting into that contest as players, it’s obviously lots to think about how to do that especially with Ajinkya as captain,” he added.
“The great thing from India’s perspective is that you’ve got three if not four very good players who could captain the team at any time. With him, he’ll bring a calm and measured approach with his nature.”
Warner said he will continue to be aggressive with his approach in batting, as was evident during the back-end of IPL 2020.
“Yeah definitely. What do you want to see? 100 of 10 overs or something? (laughs). In the one-day stuff, I’ll still come out and play the way I normally do. There’s probably going to be no change to that,” he said.
“Here in Australia, it’s a bit different, in 50-over cricket, you can still play the normal way you do and I think I showed that last year, the way I played against Pakistan and Sri Lanka. I played pretty much the same way as I did during the backend of that IPL. I won’t be changing my game and will go out and tackle it the way I always do.”