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Australian opening batter David Warner has confirmed that he won’t be taking a Cricket Australia contract next year. Warner announced the end of his Test career in January next year after the home series against Pakistan. But the left-hander expressed he is open to playing white-ball cricket for Australia.
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Warner, while speaking to the media, shared he wants to play in the ICC T20 World Cup in the USA and West Indies next year, and possibly till the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy in Pakistan. Justifying his decision, Warner cited the examples of former Aussie all-rounder Brad Hogg, West Indian Chris Gayle and Pakistani batting great Shoaib Mali who continued playing limited-over cricket beyond 40.
“I won’t be taking a contract, definitely not,” Warner said. “How the system works in Australia is that if you play five (T20) games or ODIs, or three Tests, you get upgraded and then you’re legally bound by a contracting system with sponsors and stuff. That’s something that becomes a bit of a pain in the backside, especially at my stage of my career.”
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“So I don’t want to be signed to that agreement and that’s something I have to think about moving forward because if you’re going to get a low contract, it’s going to cost you a lot in the long run with sponsorships. I’ve got to sit back and have a look at what the schedule is, the (ICC) Future Tours schedule and you’ve got a Champions Trophy that’s coming up as well,” he said.
Warner also shared that this approach allows him to spend ample time with his family while achieving his goal of representing his country in major white-ball tournaments. He said, “I’ll have to give myself a little bit of time off after summer to actually think about all of that first.”
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“My goal is still to set my sights on playing the Twenty20 World Cup in the Caribbean first (in June next year), and I think from there I’ll probably decide what I’m going to do with white-ball cricket. I’m still feeling fit. I’m very comfortable with what I’m doing. So I’ve got to sit down and look at what there is, and what I can play,” he continued.
