Warner threatens to ruin nemesis Broad's retirement party as Aussies fight back
David Warner could have the last laugh against his greatest Ashes nemesis Stuart Broad, securing his own retirement party in the process.
England’s desire to give Broad the perfect send off has had an early wobble thanks to Warner who found himself sprawled across the turf midway through what is currently his 36th Test fifty. James Anderson had just delivered an uncharacteristic beamer.
A chest high full toss at top speed which the Aussie only just managed to fend away to the third man boundary before he landed on his backside. The apology was swift and graciously accepted by the opener who smiled in the knowledge that the ball must have simply slipped out of the fingers of Anderson.
Warner was down but he was not out and that is how it remained right up until another deluge of rain halted proceedings for the day with the Aussies 135-0 in their hunt for a record-breaking 384 to win. And what a delicious story it would be if Warner was at the centre of an incredible run chase that denies Broad the fairytale finish he was hoping for when he made his retirement announcement on Saturday evening.
Warner has gone even earlier on his retirement plans, laying down the gauntlet to the Aussie selectors to keep picking him until the third of three Tests against Pakistan at his Sydney Cricket Ground home. A solitary fifty in the series so far would have made it a far more difficult request to agree to, despite Warner’s place in the pantheon of great Aussie batters.
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But an Ashes series-winning knock at the Oval to put Bazball to bed amid the emotional farewell to Broad - a man who has dismissed him 17 times in his career - would surely give him the room he needs to be able to say goodbye on his own terms. And he has looked good in this innings of 58 not out so far too with England’s bowling attack struggling to be as effective as they were the first time round.
Usman Khawaja has settled in once more alongside him to make it to 69 not out in a far more positive manner than his first innings, and having moved past 57 he is now the series top run scorer, ahead of Zak Crawley. And after becoming the 21st Aussie to score 5,000 Test runs in this innings, he is likely to stay there too with Steve Smith and Travis Head both 174 runs behind, with 249 runs required for victory.
Broad will retire from cricket following the Ashes (PA)England would love to see either of them have a try, because it would mean that they had finally taken an Aussie wicket on a pitch that appears to be getting better for batting by the session rather than the other way around. Despite being carried on a wave of emotion following his guard of honour at the start of the day and his powerfully hooked six into the crowd, Broad was as ineffective as his fellow bowlers with the ball in their hands.
Anderson had visible 41st birthday messages from his two daughters plastered on the window of the box his and Broad’s families were stationed in, but they didn’t bring him any luck as he sent down 10 overs without joy. Perhaps it was a day for Mark Wood to take the pitch out of the equation and use his express pace to unsettle the Aussies.
Only the demon Geordie was spotted down at fine leg shrugging his shoulders to the crowd who wondered why he wasn’t being unleashed. Eventually Wood fired up having been held back until the score read 99-0 and 32 overs had been bowled, and even though he clunked Khawaja firmly on the back of the helmet, his three overs failed to make the difference either.
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