"Don't think he should retire" - Virender Sehwag on David Warner
Virender Sehwag believes Australia's David Warner still has it in him to play Test cricket and shouldn't retire after the ongoing Syndey Test against Pakistan. The former India opener, who was one of the first to recognize Warner's talent, said the Australian's decision could be more related to his family than skills.
Sehwag's remarks came in an interview with Cricbuzz. He was asked whether reflexes slowing down with age affects players like him and Warner, who look to hit the ball and depend on hand-eye coordination, more than others. Sehwag said those things can be worked upon, especially for someone as fit as Warner.
"I personally don't think he should retire from Tests based on the way he's batting. But as you age and get to 35-36, you start thinking about off-field matters, like your family and your kids. I can't see any issue with his reflexes or fitness owing to age. I think he's mentally decided that he doesn't want to play Tests anymore. I'm sure he will continue playing T20 cricket for a long time to come," Sehwag said.
Having made his Test debut in 2011, he will retire from the format with over 8,600 runs, 26 centuries, and 56 half-centuries from 112 games. Sehwag feels Australia will find it hard to replace Warner.
"I don't think there will be another David Warner for Australia. The fact that he's made 26 Test tons and has nearly 9000 runs after batting in the style that he has is extraordinary. How do you find someone else to do that? You might find someone who could pull it off over a handful of Tests but to do that over a 100 Tests is something else," he said.
The 37-year-old wasn't in great form in the lead-up to the Pakistan series which had made some doubt his place in the team. However, he smashed a brilliant 164 in the first Test to make sure he bowed out on his terms in Sydney.
Virender Sehwag picks his favorite David Warner knock
Warner scored 1,218 runs against India including four hundreds and three half-centuries. His best against the Indians was a 180 (159) in Perth in 2012 where he reached three figures in just 69 balls - the fastest for a Test opener at the time. Sehwag picked it as his favorite knock from the Aussie.
"It has to be that 180 he made at the WACA against us in 2011 (2012). It was outstanding batting and he'd made the century by the tea-break and also finished the match off single-handedly by then. It was also an innings that summed up David Warner the Test batter, the ability to finish the game off like that and so quickly and what he's gone on to achieve is very special," Sehwag stated.
Pakistan won the toss and elected to bat first in the Sydney Test.
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