"I was listening to some other voices" - David Warner on what impacted his performance during 2019 Ashes series
Veteran Australian opener David Warner recently admitted that outside noises affected him a lot during his forgettable run in the 2019 Ashes series. The left-handed batter also underlined that the key to scoring runs is to put the bowlers off their line and lengths.
Warner managed just 95 runs in 10 innings during the 2019 Ashes series, averaging 9.5 with only one fifty. Right-arm seamer Stuart Broad was his nemesis as he took the left-hander's wicket seven times.
David Warner struggles to open his account yet again! Paceman Stuart Broad has dismissed him for another duck in Manchester.
The Australian's numbers in the #Ashes so far: 2, 8, 3, 5, 65, 0, 0, 0. https://t.co/JgYNOkZCmv
Reflecting on the 2019 leg, the southpaw recalled that he veered away from his game plan, derailing himself completely. The 36-year-old highlighted that his 61 in Leeds was when he played naturally. He said, as quoted by Perth Now:
"If I'm critical of myself, it was probably going away from my game plan which is looking to score. I was listening to some other voices, which for my perspective, probably didn't suit my game. I felt like I batted my best at Leeds and that was the way I normally played. If you can put the bowlers off their line and lengths and put pressure on them, that's how you score runs. That's when I'm at my best."
The New South Wales batter doesn't have an impressive record in England when it comes to Test cricket. In 13 innings, he averages only 26.04 with seven fifties.
"There was a higher pronounced seam" - David Warner on Dukes ball in 2019 Ashes series
Warner also feels the Dukes ball has become easier to tackle now compared to the 2019 leg as back then the ball had a more pronounced seam and moved around more. He added:
"I look back and look at the dismissals and look at both opening pairs. That was a difficult time to bat. I looked at the 2019 Dukes ball compared to the 2023 ball, it's completely different as well. There was a higher pronounced seam back then. It was hard to tackle. Once you got in the ball still moved around for the 80 overs. It was difficult. There was nothing to do with any of my technique or anything."
The 2023 Ashes series starts on June 16 at Edgbaston in Birmingham. However, Australia will compete in the World Test Championship (WTC) final against India before that.