Matured Warner eyes vice-captaincy

David Warner believes the contentment he has found off-field and the dignity and maturity he has been showing on it put forward a strong case for him to be elevated to the role of Test vice-captain under the man tipped to take over the leadership, Steve Smith.

As recently as six months ago, the chance of Warner being in the frame for what (if the oft-quoted comparison between Australian cricket and politics can be believed) is the fourth-most important job in the nation would have been less likely than England claiming the 2015 Ashes with a Test to spare.

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But these are unsettled times, and the sudden departure of skipper Michael Clarke coupled with what is expected to be a harsh pruning of some of the sturdy branches that have supported the Test team over the past decade has changed the landscape significantly.

And while Cricket Australia Chief Executive James Sutherland was far less unequivocal about the likely identity of the next vice-captain than he was about endorsing the likely leader, Warner is of the view that he is both right and ready to be considered for the deputy’s job.

“I had my first captain experience in the IPL this year,” Warner said today about his tenure leading Sunrisers Hyderabad to the cusp of the IPL semi-finals with a team that included Indian opener Shikhar Dhawan, South African speedster Dale Steyn and Australian allrounder Moises Henriques.

“I felt like I had the team going in the right direction and I got some great feedback from the coaching staff and guys like (former India Test batsman) VVS Laxman and Murali (Sri Lanka’s record-breaking spin bowler Muthiah Muralidaran) as well, so it was pleasing to hear that.

“And being captained by (New South Wales teammate) Moises Henriques as well – he came up to me saying I did a great job, which is always a great thing to hear.

“Definitely if the opportunity (to be vice-captain) arises I’d love to take that, but obviously at the end of the day I’ve got to do my job for the team, which is to score runs.”

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Indeed, it’s been Warner’s remarkable recent stint as a Test opener that would have him under consideration for the job given that – if, as expected, there is a wholesale regeneration of the Test team following the Ashes disaster – he is now one of the most experienced and accomplished members.

But like so many of his top-order teammates, Warner has struggled at times in the seaming, swinging conditions in which England’s bowlers have revelled and has thus far failed to complete a century for just the second time in a Test series since the 2013 Ashes campaign in the UK.

Which was when his altercation with England’s Joe Root in a Birmingham nightclub had his immediate playing future in doubt, and brought him to the attention of Sutherland who strongly condemned the opener’s actions.

When Warner twice fronted match referees during India’s Test and ODI visit to Australia last summer, Sutherland again felt compelled to admonish Warner in public by counselling him to “stop looking for trouble”.

That came in the wake of a clash with Rohit Sharma in which Warner bluntly told the India batsman to “speak English”.

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And those instances were cited as reasons why, when asked last Sunday if Warner was the front runner for the vice-captain’s post after Sutherland anointed Smith as Clarke’s “heir apparent”, the CA boss replied: "I don't think that (appointment) is necessarily as obvious."

But given the historic reluctance to formally elevate bowlers to within a heartbeat of the top job, and that wicketkeeper Peter Nevill is but three matches into his Test career, a batsman reasonably assured of a place in the Test XI would seem the safest option.

And with Warner’s opening partner Chris Rogers indicating he will follow Clarke into retirement at series end, Shane Watson facing an uphill battle to unseat Mitchell Marsh from the allrounder’s job and top-order players Shaun Marsh and Adam Voges under scrutiny, Warner might just have a claim.

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As one of the few who plays all three formats of the international game (Test, ODI and T20) and a long-time state and national teammate of Smith – who is two years Warner’s junior – there are synergies that the selectors and CA will surely consider.

“I’ve played under ‘Smudge’ (Smith),” said Warner, who has served as Australia vice-captain once in an ODI and briefly led the team during the recent tour match against Derbyshire when Smith was absent in Paris and Clarke was off the field.

“We’ve played a lot of cricket together. He’s got great ideas and I feel that I definitely can work with him.

“We’re always talking out there (on the field) amongst ourselves anyway; obviously with him (Smith) being the vice-captain (now) and throwing ideas to the skipper, and as a unit we’re always talking.

“And even when I’m at mid-off I’m always asking the bowlers what they’re thinking.

“But at the end of the day it’s up to the board and selectors to move forward with that.”

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In essence, the question will be whether the selection panel and CA Board (which ratifies the selectors’ recommendations on captaincy appointments) believes that Warner has matured and learned sufficiently to take on the associated off-field diplomatic responsibilities that accompany leadership.

There is no question that since taking a public vow to tone down his combative on-field persona when he went into this year’s World Cup with the threat of a heavy sanction hanging over him if he transgressed again, Warner has been true to his (lack of) words.

And apart from rediscovering his remarkable streak of form that saw him peel off nine centuries in the space of 14 Tests up until January this year, Warner believes there is not much more he can do to put forward his credentials as a reformed character.

“Go back two years (to the 2013 Ashes tour) and my life probably wasn’t in the right direction,” said the doting father of one whose wife Candice is expecting their second child next year.

“I was playing cricket for Australia, it’s a boyhood dream but I needed to be put back in my place a little bit.

“And since then I think I’ve turned a lot around.

“I’ve got a lot of hundreds and I’m playing a good brand of cricket.

“There’s been a little bit of a hiccup with the Rohit Sharma stuff, but at the end of the day that was on the field and I’ve learned to bite my tongue a little bit now.

“I’ve got to keep moving forward and my job is to score runs.

“If I can keep doing that, the rest will take care of itself.”

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