Mitchell Johnson, the former Australian fast bowler, heavily criticized David Warner in the days leading up to the first Test between hosts Australia and Pakistan, suggesting that Warner had become a burden to the team and didn’t merit a grand farewell upon his retirement from Test cricket, which might happen as early as the third test against Pakistan in early January.
Despite the criticism, Warner expressed resilience, stating, “People make comments, but you get on with it and focus on scoring runs.” He emphasized his commitment to the team, saying, “I can’t worry about headlines; I’ve got to focus on what I need to do for the team—keep scoring runs and putting the team in a great position.”
In the Test arena, Warner, adopting a limited-overs mindset, along with Khawaja, set an aggressive tone, scoring 14 in the first over from Afridi on the first day of first Test vs Pakistan . They reached the 50-run mark in the 10th over, and Warner achieved his half-century in the 15th over with a boundary against Faheem Ashraf.
Transitioning further into one-day mode, Warner hit his first six of the innings two overs later, a fine-leg boundary following 11 boundaries.
Warner’s impressive 164 off 211 balls propelled Australia to 346-5 against Pakistan’s inexperienced bowlers on the opening day.
