David Warner hoping for comeback into Australian side after blistering ton

David Warner of Australia A bats during day 1 of the 1st unofficial Test match between South Africa A and Australia A at Tuks Oval on July 24, 2013 in Pretoria

David Warner reminded everyone of his tremendous potential after scoring a blazing knock of 193 in just 226 deliveries in Australia A’s opening match against their South African counterparts in Pretoria yesterday.

The Australian batsman returned to roaring form on Wednesday after scoring a massive 193 comprising of 29 fours and a maximum, taking Australia A to 399/5 at stumps on day one.

After Australia A lost two wickets by the 13th over to Kyle Abbot, Warner walked in with a lot to prove to his critics and selectors. After establishing a decent 73-run partnership with skipper Aaron Finch which brought them back into the game, South Africa A’s de Lange turned the tide, capturing Finch’s wicket.

Moises Henriques came out three down and wasted little time in scoring a 76-run partnership with the well-settled Warner who had managed to get his half-century by then, before succumbing to South Africa A’s bowling attack. A fired-up Maxwell walked in following Henrique’s wicket to establish a massive 204-run stand with Warner, whose wicket signalled the end of day one. Glenn Maxwell remained unbeaten at 103 by the end of the day.

Maxwell was very pleased with his innings. “It’s always nice to get the century out of the way on the first day,” he said. “I’m very happy with my performance; this is probably the best I’ve batted in a long time. It was good to bat with Dave Warner. He was taking a lot of the pressure off me by scoring pretty quickly.”

Following the left-handed batsman’s suspension from the Australian side due to an on-field spat with English cricketer Joe Root during the Champions Trophy and Darren Lehmann confirming Chris Rogers and Shane Watson as Australia’s openers for the Ashes series, the only position left for the 26-year-old is in the middle order.

In order to prepare him for the role, which was once burdened to Mr. Cricket, Michael Hussey, Warner was sent to South Africa along with the country’s A side. With his current form, the dynamic left-hander seems certain to join the main squad in their third Ashes Test against England at Old Trafford starting next Thursday.

On the other hand, Justin Ontong, the South Africa A captain, was disappointed with his side’s performance. “It was quite a hard day for us. The wicket was good to bat on, but we should have bowled a little better in the first hour,” he said. “We bowled on both sides of the wicket which made it very difficult for me to set fields. And if you bowl [like that] to good batsmen like Warner, they’ll punish you.

“We need to pick up five more wickets. We are going to have a good chat now and come back strongly tomorrow. Still it will be hard work for our batters but they need to apply themselves and show patience and get themselves in a position like David Warner got,” he concluded.