Warner: Australia’s forte is the bench strength

David Warner has hailed Australia’s remarkable bench strength as a key factor in their success, evident as they have been during the ongoing one-day series against India. Warner, who missed the second and third games of the VB Series to attend the birth of his second child, was replaced in the team by Shaun Marsh, who scored two crucial half-centuries.

Warner revealed that he had keenly followed the third ODI from the hospital and was eager to return.

David Warner has hailed Australia’s remarkable bench strength as a key factor in their success, evident as they have been during the ongoing one-day series against India. Warner, who missed the second and third games of the VB Series to attend the birth of his second child, was replaced in the team by Shaun Marsh, who scored two crucial half-centuries.

It’s always good when you get time off from the game, but you don’t want to miss too much cricket, because at the end of the day you’re giving an opportunity to someone else.

Australia did not even require the services of in-form Usman Khawaja, who was called up as cover, and could afford to rest Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Marsh for varying periods. Mitchell Johnson has retired while Mitchell Starc is facing a long injury lay-off.

“The greatest thing about Australian cricket at the moment is that we’ve got such great depth,” Warner said here on Tuesday. “That’s the best thing about cricket in this country – when someone goes out, there’s always someone to replace you, as good as everyone else.”

Warner revealed that he had keenly followed the third ODI from the hospital and was eager to return. “I’m thrilled that it was a nice, easy birth and now I can get back to cricket and work. I was glued to the TV even though I was in the hospital with my wife. It’s fantastic that we’re 3-0 up. I was actually very, very excited to see Glenn Maxwell go out there and play a mature innings and get us home.

"It’s always good when you get time off from the game, but you don’t want to miss too much cricket, because at the end of the day you’re giving an opportunity to someone else.”

The Manuka Oval, the venue for the fourth ODI here, needed adapting to, Warner felt. “The dimensions of the ground are a little bit bigger than most grounds,” he said. “Coming from the MCG, there the straight boundaries are short. Here it’s pretty big all around and the wind plays a big factor here. You’ve got to target the right boundaries.”

Credited to Indian batsmen

Warner also lauded the performances of India’s top-order batsmen. “Rohit is in probably the form of his career,” he said. “He’s a very good white ball player. Virat’s obviously Virat Kohli. He’s a very good player. He is the rock in the middle. Then you’ve got Jinx (Rahane) who comes in and he’s capable of playing those big shots. Credit to him, he’s worked hard in the last 12 months.

"I’ve seen him evolve through the IPL and try to rotate the strike and clear the ropes. But at the end of the day, so far, 300 hasn’t been enough. We have to be on top of our game to keep chasing those good totals down.”