Australia’s legendary national cricket team captain Ricky Ponting has shared his views on veteran opener David Warner’s recent form ahead of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, which will be held in the US and West Indies in June.
Warner failed to set the stage on fire in the Indian Premier League 2024 and his finger injury made things worse for him. He played only 8 matches in Indian Premier League 2024 and scored 168 runs at a poor average of 21 and strike rate of 134.40.
Warner never looked comfortable in the middle when he came out to bat for the Delhi Capitals and could not score his runs quickly. David Warner’s poor form ahead of the World Cup could worry Mitchell Marsh & Co. However, Ricky Ponting doesn’t feel the same way.
Speaking to ICC, Ricky Ponting stated that David Warner had a good start to the tournament but things went poorly for him after suffering an injury.
“In fact, the tournament started very well. His scoring rate was really good. At the start of the tournament, he opened the batting for us with Mitchell Marsh, and that combination was working very well. He (Warner) didn’t really hit it, and then he took a nasty hit on the hand,” Ponting told ICC.
Ricky Ponting added that Warner’s form is not a concern from Australia’s point of view as he is a struggling competitor.
“He basically had the worst bone bruises and contusion on the back of his hand I have ever seen. He is a feisty little competitor who once the World Cup comes around, he is back in the Australian colours. So I have no real concern for him,” he added.
Notably, David Warner will feature in the Australian national cricket team for the last time as he has already announced his retirement from Tests and ODIs and will end his T20I career in the upcoming World Cup.
He’s not worried about the negatives of dating – Ricky Ponting on Travis Head
Unlike David Warner, his Australian teammate Travis Head had a stellar IPL season with the Sunrisers Hyderabad as he scored 567 runs at an incredible average of 40.50.
Talking about Travis Head, Ricky Ponting stated that the batsman has changed his approach on how to deal with outside noise and it has benefited him a lot.
“He is not worried about the negative aspects of going out. (In T20 Cricket) You have to go out and try to hit the first ball for six. If it comes off, it comes off. You’re out, your team is out,” he stated.
“(Previously) I was worried about what someone might have said or what the media wrote if I came out playing a certain shot, instead of just going out, going back and scoring runs. So, for me, that has been the real change in him.”
Meanwhile, Australia has already announced its squad for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 and players like Steve Smith and Jake Fraser-McGurk have missed out on selection in the main squad. The Mitchell Marsh-led team will begin their World Cup campaign against Oman in Barbados on June 5.