On a pitch that made part-time spinners look as effective as Muttiah Muralitharan, David Warner was the only batsman to score a fifty. In the only T20 match of Australia’s tour of United Arab Emirates 2014, David Warner batted brilliantly and scored 53 runs off just 39 balls.
Although, too much analysis cannot be done on a T20 innings, but David Warner’s knock of 53 runs is a great sign for Australia, as far as this tour concerned. David Warner is mostly regarded as a batsman who prefers fast and bouncy wickets. But, this knock will send a strong signal to the Pakistan side that he has come prepared for the challenge.
The last time Australia toured United Arab Emirates in 2012, David Warner looked very uncomfortable against spin bowling and struggled to score runs. Warner scored just 50 runs in 3 matches at an average of 16.66.
But, this innings will give him a lot of confidence going into the ODI and Test series, as all other batsmen struggled to get going on the rank-turner. Warner batted very intelligently and went after the quicks initially, smashing them for boundaries all around the park. Later, when he got settled in the middle, Warner took his chances against the part-time spin of Saad Nasim and Sohaib Maqsood. Warner also played his trademark switch-hit against Maqsood and smashed a gigantic six.
The value of Warner’s knock can be understood by the fact that Pakistan managed to score only four fours and no sixes in their innings. Whereas, David Warner alone struck four fours and three sixes. Australian batsmen are not known their batting spin bowling, but this knock will send a very positive message to his teammates and give them a lot of confidence for the upcoming ODI series.
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by The Cricket Lounge
image source: ESPNCRICINFO
