Though Stuart Broad turned the clock back to 2019 at Headingley,where he dismissed Warner for the 16th and 17th time in his career for scores of 4 and 1,Warner is still averaging the same as,or better than,half the Australian batting line-up in this series.
Australian opener David Warner and coach and selector Andrew McDonald.Getty
The bigger conundrum for Australia is how to keep Mitchell Marsh in the team following his brilliant and brutal run-a-ball 118 in the third Test,filling in for injured fellow all-rounder Cameron Green.
Australia’s defeat at Headingley let England back into the series,which now stands at 2-1 with two Tests to play. That must sharpen the focus of the selectors.
On the surface,getting rid of Warner would seem a good start but dropping a player who scored a double century at the height of the Australian summer would create more problems than it solves.
It’s not just Warner
Australia doesn’t have a Warner problem so much as a batting problem. Three of the top four have under-performed,and that includes Steve Smith,who made a century and was player of the match in the second Test at Lord’s. Despite this,his is still averaging a modest 32 across the three Tests,almost half his career average.
The veteran opener's spot in the Test team is under scrutiny after a poor run of form
More worrying is Marnus Labuschagne. Recently ranked the No.1 batsman in the world,his series average of 24 is the same as Warner’s,but unlike Warner he hasn’t made a half-century. Australia must get more from their batting engine room over the remaining two Tests or their attempt to win a first Ashes series in England since 2001 is in danger of faltering.
Should they open with an all-rounder?
The simple solution would be to drop Warner and open with either Marsh or Green. However,all-rounders bat at No.6 for a reason:to keep them away from the new Dukes ball in English conditions.
It will be hard for selectors to drop Mitchell Marsh after his century at Headingley.AP
Marsh came in at 4-85 on the opening day at Headingley after Australia had been sent in,and it would have been 5-98 shortly after lunch had Joe Root not dropped a soda at first slip off Marsh,who was on 12 at the time.
As for slotting Green in at the top of the order,the 24-year-old admitted himself on Friday Enormously talented with bat and ball,Green is an uncertain starter still finding his way at Test level despite having played 23 matches. He has been the worst offender amid Australia’s top six,averaging just 21 across the first two Tests before being ruled out at Headingley.
Green’s sometimes unsettling change bowling would be missed,but as a batsman first,his numbers leave him the most vulnerable.
Todd Murphy v Marsh/Green
Australia could drop young spinner Todd Murphy,who bowled only nine overs at Headingley including just two in the second innings.
However,Murphy’s lack of bowling was more a reflection of a low-scoring match and captain Pat Cummins’ lack of confidence to get his young spinner into the game. Murphy should have bowled as soon as destructive England captain Ben Stokes came to the crease,so he could turn the ball across the left-hander. Stokes bats cautiously at the start of his innings with other batsmen around him,but unleashes when batting with the tail.
Australia have not gone into a Test without a spinner since 2011 and on an Ashes tour since 2009,when Nathan Hauritz was injured. It would be wrong to drop Murphy for Old Trafford given England’s recalled spinner,Moeen Ali,has 16 wickets at 18.5 from his three Tests there.
The case for Warner
Believe it or not,Warner is playing his best cricket since 2021,and his best innings of this tour wasn’t against England.
It was the 43 he made during the opening day of the World Test Championship final against India at the Oval in early June,when Australia were sent in under heavy skies. Warner lasted 21 overs and was unluckily out gloving a pull down the leg side.
He batted with a tight technique against a quality attack operating in the best bowling conditions of the match,something he also did at Lord’s,scoring 66 and lasting almost 30 overs after Australia were sent in.
It was the second of three successive opening partnerships of 61 or better with Usman Khawaja,useful contributions given Australia has lost every toss.
But if Warner is dismissed cheaply by Broad yet again,all bets are off. His plan to retire after the Sydney Test next summer will be a pipedream.
Boland v Hazlewood
Despite an incredible start to his Test career,Boland,34,has taken just two wickets in two Tests this Ashes series at an average of 116. He failed to take at wicket at Headingley on the best bowling surface of the tour.
A rested Hazlewood is a quality replacement needed to try and curb Bazball.
My Old Trafford Test XI: Usman Khawaja,David Warner,Marnus Labuschagne,Steve Smith,Travis Head,Mitchell Marsh,Alex Carey,Mitchell Starc,Pat Cummins (c),Todd Murphy,Josh Hazlewood.
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