Shane Watson backs David Warner, says leadership ban should be lifted

After Austalia’s  disastrous performance in the T20 World Cup at home under Aaron Finch, Shane Watson, former No. 1 Australian all-rounder and one of the leading critics of Cricket Australia’s (CA) ongoing reluctance to restore David Warner’s leadership role, has increased the demand for the top-order batting stalwart to be appointed the nation’s T20 skipper.

Due to their underwhelming performances and some dubious selections, Australia’s  title defending T20 World Cup campaign came to an early end, as New Zealand and England advanced from Group 1 of the Super 12 stage to the last four.

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With experts demanding a thorough review of Australia’s debacle, Watson said it’s high time CA lift the leadership role ban on Warner and replace Finch with the batting stalwart.

“I’ve had an opinion on who should have been the short-term T20 World Cup captain for a while, and that’s David Warner,” Watson was quoted as saying by news.com.au.

“But that seems to have been caught up in the bureaucracy of Australian cricket because of a couple of lines of a code of conduct legal document. How hard is it to change one or two lines in a legal document to make sure that someone who has paid for his mistakes and then some (can captain the side)?

Warner was the most heavily punished of the three players involved in the 2018 ball-tampering incident against South Africa in Cape Town — alongside then skipper Steven Smith and Cameron Bancroft.
For the remainder of his playing career, the left-handed batter was barred from all managerial positions in Australian cricket. However, Warner may captain the nation’s T20 team and the BBL,  as there is rising support for overturning the decision.

The T20I captain’s position is in jeopardy due to Finch’s poor performance, therefore the 35-year-old will participate in the forthcoming Big Bash League (BBL) before making a decision regarding his T20 future.

Although Warner is a year older than Finch, the powerful opener will probably still be playing in the Caribbean and the United States in 2024 for the next T20 World Cup, where his knowledge and aggressive style will be helpful if he is given the opportunity to captain.

“The code of conduct documents can be changed by someone in two seconds. For me, David Warner is an excellent decision maker under pressure. Tactically, he’s very good, he’s a very good leader and he’s very experienced as well. I’m just disappointed that for his sake he hasn’t had an opportunity to lead the Aussies because he’s a very good leader.

“Obviously, it’s not a long-term solution, but another T20 World Cup is coming up in a few years and Dave is still going to be performing very well because he’s still one of the best T20 batters in the world,” added Watson.

(Inputs from IANS)