David Warner joins his Australian captain Michael Clarke in withdrawing from the BBL
David Warner is the latest Australian international cricketer to pull out from this year’s Big Bash League (BBL), citing the gruelling international schedule for the Australian cricket team this year. It comes as a massive blow to the organizers of the BBL, intent on drawing huge crowds for the games, as they lose out on star quality with Warner’s absence.
Warner’s omission comes shortly after Michael Clarke, Australian captain, announced that he is also not going to be participating in the BBL this year. It is purely a coincidence that both Warner and Clarke belong to the Sydney Thunder franchise in the BBL and for them to find replacements for the two of them, more so from a marketing perspective as they rarely ever played for the franchise due to their international commitments, is going to be virtually impossible.
Warner’s and Clarke’s decision to withdraw from the 2014-15 BBL season is completely justifiable when you take a look at Australia’s international schedule for their home season. The Australians begin their summer with a 5-match ODI series against South Africa followed by a 4-match Test series against India. After that, there is a triangular ODI series with India and England before the all-important 2015 ODI World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
“It was obviously a really hard decision because I love playing in the Big Bash. But with a massive summer of international cricket I want to focus on doing the best I can for the Test team and hopefully help us win the World Cup,” Warner said.
Warner also said that the break from the BBL would give him an opportunity to spend time with his young family. In doing so, it would help him feel mentally refreshed while turning up for Australia.
“Given there is so much international cricket it was unlikely that I would be available for many BBL matches. By then, I'll also have a new young family so the extra day or two at home between international games will be invaluable. I've made this decision just for this season; I'm looking forward to being involved in the Big Bash again next summer,” he concluded.