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Australian opener David Warner may have had a horrendous Ashes series on England soil last time but former England captain Michael Vaughan can be a real threat to the Ben Stokes-led side if things go his way. There have been question marks over Warner’s future in Test cricket but Vaughan revealed that England fear what he can do and playing him in the middle order may turn out to be a masterstroke for Pat Cummins’ side.
"The one thing with David Warner, I know England fear him, I do know that the captain worries that Warner could come out of the traps and just have one of those series. And he's never done it really in England. He doesn't have much of a record here. I know Anderson and Broad don't mind bowling to him. But the modern game seems to be available to out-of-the-box thinking more than ever. He doesn't have to open the batting," Vaughan said ahead of Ashes 2023.
Warner does not have a good Test record on England soil. The southpaw has scored 651 runs from 25 innings at an average of 26.04 including seven half-centuries. Warner has struggled against England new-ball duo James Anderson and Stuart Broad. Warner has found it difficult to judge the line and swing of the ball when Broad bowls from around the wicket. Vaughan feels Warner can counter spinners if he bats in the middle order.
"Warner is such a good player of spin. He's such a good player when the ball that's not moving. The ball won't move after 30 odd overs in English conditions. Could they find a place for him at five or six?" Vaughan posed a question.
But before the Ashes challenge, Warner is likely to be in the playing eleven against World Test Champions (WTC) final against Rohit Sharma-led India starting June 7 at the Oval.
Warner has not had much success in the longest format. In 2022, he scored 571 runs from 20 innings at an average of 30.05 including one century and two half-centuries. In 2023, he could score just 36 runs from four innings in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2023 in tough conditions.
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