Australian opener David Warner played a T20I in New Zealand after a long gap of six years. Warner who announced that he will retire from T20I cricket after the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024 has been getting support from the crowd wherever he goes. However, it wasn’t the case in Wellington where he was booed by the crowd.
Before the series, Warner had revealed that during the 2016 tour New Zealand crowd 'got personal' and made 'vulgar and derogatory' remarks. On February 21, in the first T20I of the series, he did not get a warm welcome. After he was dismissed in the run chase of 216, Warner was booed by the crowd. The 37-year-old was not agitated. Instead, he gave a flying kiss to them. The gesture even left his teammate Nathan Ellis in splits as he was sitting in the dugout.
The opener scored 32 runs from 20 balls including a four and three sixes. He hit left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner for two consecutive sixes in the seventh over before he was dismissed off the last ball.
Skipper Mitchell Marsh's unbeaten 44-ball 72 and Tim David's match-winning 10-ball 31 cameo led Australia home with six wickets in hand. David hit Tim Southee for a boundary off the last ball to help Australia take a 1-0 lead in the three-T20I series.
What did Warner say before the series?
"Over here, it's always the harsh reality that we're neighbours, in sport we like to beat each other. From that perspective, we're going to be expecting the crowd to come at us as hard as they come,” Warner told the reporters when asked about whether the crowd will leave him alone or not.
"As we always say, it's in one ear, out the other - if I actually hear anything. It's about coming out and trying to put my best foot forward, and score runs.”
He recounted the incidents of his previous tours.
"The crowd, yeah, they got personal, but if they have to get personal, that's their character. I just go about my business. But that's upon each individual, if that's what they feel like they have to do, then so be it. If you want to pay your money to come and abuse people, you have to go back and lay in your own bed," he added.
Warner in good form
After a forgettable ILT20 2024 season with the bat, Warner returned to form. In the T20I series against West Indies in home conditions, he registered scores of 70, 22 and 81.
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