It’s fair to say David Warner went out with a bang, a fitting exit given his arrival in the international scene came with the same sort of explosion.
The veteran opener’s value to the Australian team was underlined by the fact that in his final home summer he topped the Australian run-scoring list across all formats.
That’s despite missing five of the available 11 games Australia played, both the two-Test and three ODIs against the West Indies.
Warner, 37, confirmed he’d be retiring from international cricket after the T20 World Cup, that he was “well and truly done”, after claiming player of the series honours in the three T20s against the Windies.
He went out walloping too, a team high score of 81, with 54 runs in boundaries, and captain Mitch Marsh said he’d been an “amazing servant” for his nation
“It’s obviously been an amazing career for him,” Marsh said.
“I guess it’s kind of fitting for him to finish the way it has [with that innings]. ”What a servant to Australian cricket. Unfortunately we couldn’t get a win for him.”
Warner began his final home summer with his biggest score, his 164 first innings runs in the opening Test of the summer against Pakistan in Perth a signal of intent that he wanted to leave a mark on his way out.
The runs rollercoaster included a duck the very next innings, before a 57 at his home ground the SCG, in his Test swan song
He skipped the ODIs against the West Indies, having walked away from the 50-over format, before returning for the T20s, showing he remains a key plank in Australia’s World Cup title, with a series-high 179 runs.
That he will head to the World Cup in the Caribbean and USA knowing it’s his last hurrah, bodes well given the way his singular focus benefited the Australian team over the six matches in which he bid farewell to the game on home soil.
“It’s time for the youngsters to come through and showcase their talent,” Warner said as his parting words.
“We’ve got extreme talent here. We’re in good stead for the future.”
Before a replacement T20 opener is decided, the series concluded with a lingering question about who might partner Warner at the World Cup.
Josh Inglis got two tries against the Windies, before Masrh opened in the final game. Travis Head, who skipped the series, still looms as the man most likely, before a re-think after the World Cup where those “youngsters” Warner spoke about should get their turn.
TOP RUN-SCORERS ACROSS INTERNATIONAL SUMMER
472 – David Warner (6 matches)
442 – Mitch Marsh (8 matches)
404 – Steve Smith (8 matches)
