David Warner's Aussie reality check amid plans to farewell Test cricket in Sydney

Veteran Aussie batter David Warner's plans for an SCG farewell to Test cricket have been thrown into some doubt, with captain Pat Cummins and coach Andrew McDonald admitting he's no certainty to be picked. Warner announced earlier this year that he plans on retiring from Test cricket after Australia's series against Pakistan, with the 37-year-old eyeing a dream farewell in his home match in Sydney.

Aussie selectors will wait until after this week's final round of matches in the Sheffield Shield before picking their Test squad for the three-match series against Pakistan, which begins on December 14 in Perth. Warner has enjoyed a glittering Test career that includes 8,487 runs for Australia, even if his recent form with the bat in red-ball cricket has been short of his own lofty standards.

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However, Aussie skipper Pat Cummins and coach Andrew McDonald have indicated that sentimentality will not come into the equation when the Test side is selected. Cummins admits that while Warner is "a great of our game in all formats", it does not guarantee him selection for the Pakistan series.

"He's a great of our game in all formats, no doubt that's part of it," Cummins said. "(But) first and foremost you always think of the performance side of things when you're picking a side.

Australia's coach echoed his skipper's sentiment after also refusing to guarantee that Warner would be opening the batting for the Pakistan series. "That will all be decided later this week," McDonald told SEN. "Like any other decision, (it's about) working out who is the best player for that position at that point in time.

"I think with Test cricket it's really clear, you don't necessarily need to future-proof things too much. With a cycle with a World Cup, One Day or T20, there's an element of 'OK, what are we looking for to build to get to that grand final?', whereas, we see every Test match as important in terms of the direction of Australian cricket."

Aussie skipper praises David Warner's batting form

While Cummins' remained tight-lipped on Warner's place in the side, he hailed the veteran batter's recent form in white-ball cricket, with the 37-year-old starring for Australia in their ODI World Cup triumph. Warner was the sixth-highest run-scorer at the tournament with 535 runs, becoming the first Aussie in history to score 500+ in two World Cups.

Cummins says Warner is batting with confidence and his recent exploits can only improve his chances of being selected in Australia's Test squad. " It can't hurt," Cummins said about Warner's recent form. "Any player's a better player when they're going in with confidence to the game, so I thought he (Warner) was brilliant this World Cup, like he has been with the white ball for a long period of time," he said.

"Again, he wasn't just playing for himself out there, he'd go and take the game on, be brave, put it back on the opposition, I think he's hitting the ball beautifully at the moment." The Aussies play Pakistan in a three-Test series, with Warner's anticipated farewell to kick off at the SCG on January 3. The Aussies then face the West Indies in a two-Test series starting on January 17.

with agencies

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