Former Australian cricketer David Warner does not mind English cricket supporters booing him during The Hundred this summer. Instead, he is embracing it.
The 38-year-old opener will play his first game in the tournament after being picked by London Spirit in the draft this week.
Warner has often faced a hostile welcome while playing in England, especially during the 2023 Ashes, when things escalated in the Lord's Long Room following Jonny Bairstow's disputed stumping.
"I would actually like them to boo Australians. I love that sort of thing. That's what energizes me," Warner said. "If they want to boo me, boo me, but don't boo the team or anything like that."
When speaking of his return to Lord's—now under his new guise as a London Spirit player—Warner admitted that he could again expect an electric atmosphere. "We'll have to wait and see when I'm walking onto that field and how they react. I'll have to go through the Long Room first to get to the dressing room, so that will be interesting," he stated.
"But this time I'm representing London Spirit, not Australia. And above all, I have to see if the Lord's lunches are as great for The Hundred as they are for internationals!" he added with a bit of humor.
With a look to England's Ashes tour of Australia next season, 2025-26, Warner is not sure if Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes' attacking style of Test cricket, or 'Bazball,' will cut it in Australian conditions. "I don't know if 'Bazball' is even a thing in England anymore, but I just can't imagine it happening in Australia," he said. "With the bounce and the nature of fields Australia laid last time in England, it would be a risky strategy. You would want to tire the pitch out and take the game into days four and five, and that is not really a style that can do that."
Although he joined an English club, Warner scoffed at the idea that he would offer inside information on Australian players. "I'm sure I'll get plenty of questions, but I won't be giving anything away," he declared.
Although Warner did contemplate retiring from Test cricket in order to play for England against India last year—when his country was trying to find a reliable opening partner for Usman Khawaja—he maintains that his Test career is well and truly over.
"That was just a case of putting my hand up if needed, with guys dropping out left, right, and center," Warner explained. "But I’m well and truly finished at the international level. As much as I’d love to be part of another Ashes series, that chapter is closed for me."
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