Aoba Tanaka 
One of the greatest batters of all time, David Warner, saw his international career come to a bitter end as Australia failed to qualify for the T20 World Cup 2024 semi-finals, exiting in the Super 8 stage. Australia needed Bangladesh to defeat Afghanistan in the final Super 8 match on Monday to advance, but despite a close contest, Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan and Naveen-ul-Haq sealed Australia’s fate with a crucial victory.
This premature exit confirmed Warner’s international retirement. The opening batter had previously announced that the T20 World Cup in the USA and West Indies would be his final tournament for Australia. Although he hinted at a potential return for next year’s Champions Trophy, it appears unlikely. Warner’s international career concluded in stages: his last ODI during Australia’s triumphant 2023 campaign in India, his final Test against Pakistan in early 2024, and now his final T20 match.
Warner’s career began with a bang, scoring a breathtaking 89 from 43 balls on his T20I debut against South Africa. Over 110 matches, he amassed 3,277 runs, including a century against Pakistan in 2019, making him the third Aussie to score centuries in all three formats of the game, alongside 28 half-centuries.
Away from international cricket, Warner had a prolific franchise T20 career, especially in the IPL, becoming just the fourth batter to surpass 10,000 runs in T20 in 2021.
Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting praised Warner’s career on ICC’s Digital Daily show: “I put my arm around him and said, ‘…just take a moment tonight to sit back by yourself and reflect on what’s been an unbelievable career across all three formats for Australia.’ You’ll struggle to find a guy that’s had as big an impact on all three forms in Australian cricket as David Warner has.”
Australia pacer Josh Hazlewood also spoke about Warner’s retirement: “We’ll definitely miss him around the group, out in the field and off the field. It’s sort of been a slow burn with Test cricket and ODI cricket and now T20. Life without him, we’ve sort of gotten used to it a little bit… it’s always different when you lose a player that’s been there for so long.”
Warner’s retirement marks the end of an era for Australian cricket, leaving behind a legacy of explosive batting, memorable performances, and significant contributions to the game across all formats.
#davidwarner #warner #cricket #news #sportznews #newssportz #cricketnews #retire #australia #international #t20worldcup #t20
