There’s no denying Warner hasn’t been at his best in any of the five Ashes series, including the most recent. Warner received ducks in both innings of Hobart for the second time in his 91-Test career match. The first time was in Manchester, and it was also against England.
Warner has scored 1,888 runs in 50 Ashes innings, with three hundred and 14 half-centuries to his credit. Warner has 1,237 runs at an excellent average of 53.78 in 25 Ashes innings at home, including three hundred and seven half-centuries. Warner, on the other hand, has only amassed 651 runs at an average of 26.04 in 25 away Ashes innings without a century. Overall has a Test average of 47.69, a comparatively lower average versus England (39.33).
Stuart Broad vs David Warner – a battle of two titans
Stuart Broad has now dismissed David Warner 14 times in Tests, four more than Warner’s next two most feared opponents — Jimmy Anderson and Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin. Broad, on the other hand, has dismissed Warner more often than any other Test batter, followed by former Australia captain Michael Clarke, second next to Ross Taylor of New Zealand and AB de Villiers of South Africa, who have each been dismissed by Broad on ten times.
What makes Stuart Broad so effective against David Warner
- Accuracy in the line & length – Broad’s decision to focus his attacks on Warner’s stumps. He’s looked for the outside edge of Warner’s bat in the past. Whereas now he is bowling fuller than ever after realizing that his leave percentage – the number of deliveries that batters were able to leave against him – was too high and resolving to bowl fuller more regularly. Warner is tempted to poke loses his wicket as a result.
- Height Difference – The height difference between Warner and Broad is also substantial, at 26 cm difference. Warner stands 170 cm tall, whereas Broad stands 196 cm tall. The height difference is crucial in generating extra bounce, which makes evaluating the ball’s length difficult. Furthermore, it is usually tough to acclimate to the bounce in England and Australia’s swinging conditions.
- Duke/Kookaburra Ball – There are also other things at play, most notably the Duke ball paired with the conditions—the surfaces, and the weather—which have all combined to make life extremely difficult for Warner and the other opening batters of both teams.
- Warner’s batting style – The term “favorable stylistic matchups” is used in combat sports, and that appears to be the case with Warner and Broad. Broad noted that Warner sits back in the crease a lot and to frequently cut or square-drive against him, so he could smack him to the boundary. Broad’s strategy changed as a result of the research, with the goal of squeezing Warner for space rather than luring him to the cordon.
So, when Broad was left out in Brisbane and Melbourne in the current series, there was a lot of confusion. Why would England abandon a weapon capable of negating Australia’s feared opener? We don’t know what difference it would have made in the series’ conclusion, but Broad’s performance in the Ashes has shown that the old dog still has a lot of fight left in him.