One of the greatest batsmen of all time, David Warner's international career ended on a sad note after Australia failed to qualify for the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup 2024 and were knocked out at the Super 8 stage. For Australia to continue their journey in the tournament, they needed Bangladesh to beat Afghanistan in the final Super 8 match on Monday. Though the Bangla Tigers came close, Rashid Khan, Naveen-ul-Haq and others stepped up at crucial intervals and knocked the Aussies out of the tournament with a win.
Australia's premature exit from the tournament also confirmed Warner's exit from international cricket. The opener had already confirmed that the T20 World Cup in the USA and West Indies would be his last in the Australian team.
Despite hints of a possible return for next year's Champions Trophy, it appears unlikely, with Warner ending his international career in stages, playing his last ODI during Australia's victorious 2023 campaign in India, his final Test against Pakistan in early 2024 and set to retire completely after the 2024 T20 World Cup.
He showcased his talent to the world when he smashed 89 runs off 43 balls in his T20I debut against South Africa. In 110 matches, he scored 3277 runs, including a hundred against Pakistan in 2019 – the third Australian to score a century in all three formats of the game, and 28 half-centuries.
Away from international cricket, he has had a stellar franchise T20 career, particularly in the IPL, and in 2021 he became just the fourth batsman to pass 10,000 runs in T20s.
“I put my hand on his shoulder. I said, '…take some time tonight and sit by yourself and think what an incredible career you've had across all three formats for Australia,'” Australia's Ricky Ponting said on the ICC's digital daily show.
“We know he retired from Test cricket in the summer but you’d be hard-pressed to find a player who has had as big an impact on all three formats of Australian cricket as David Warner.
“I have been able to play with him, I have been his coach in the IPL over the last few years and I love being in his company. So he should be proud of what he has done.”
Australia fast bowler Josh Hazlewood had also talked about Warner's international retirement after the team's defeat against India in the Super 8.
“We will definitely miss him in the team, on and off the field,” Hazelwood had said after the team's loss to India.
“(An) amazing all-format career. It's been a slow-paced career with Test cricket, ODI cricket and now T20. So, life without him, we've gotten a bit used to it… it's always different when you lose a player who's been playing for so long.”
With IANS inputs
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