Warner eyes place in WC squad

SYDNEY: Top-level international cricket may be hard to come by for David Warner in the lead-up to the 2019 World Cup, but he is confident he can stake a claim for a place in Australia’s squad.

Into the fourth month of the one-year ban imposed by Cricket Australia, Warner, the former Australia vice-captain, said the time he spends playing other forms of competitive cricket will hold him in good stead ahead of next year’s IPL, which will be immediately followed by the world tournament in May. “I know the break’s doing me well,” Warner said, after scoring a 32-ball 36 for City Cyclones in the NT Strike League, a grade tournament in Darwin.

“You don’t lose form overnight. I’ll wake up every day, face Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, the best bowlers I feel in the world. If I can face them consistently in training, when the ban’s up, that gets you back in. You know there’s plenty of warm-up games, I will be in the IPL as well leading into that. There’s plenty of cricket, plenty of world-class players playing there to get my preparation on song.” Warner’s stint with the Cyclones comes on the heels of his return to competitive cricket in Global T20 Canada.

In nine appearances in the tournament, he only made 109 runs, with a top-score of 55 for the Winnipeg Hawks.