“Next Five Years Are Scary…”: Why David Warner Is Glad He Is At The “Back End” Of Career

The rise of cricket’s popularity across the globe has seen several new tournaments and formats coming to the fore. Not only the International Cricket Council, but also the cricket boards of different countries like India, Australia, England and South Africa are paying proper attention to the growing market to are making sure they get the best return out of the it. The consequences have seen players playing way more matches than what they used to play some ten or twenty years ago. The packed cricket calendar is taking a toll on the mental and physical health of players.

To counter the issue, either players are taking premature retirement from international cricket or they are opting out of a particular format. Ben Stokes retiring from ODIs or Trent Boult opting out of New Zealand’s central contract are the recent examples.

Highlighting the same problem, Australian opener David Warner said that the cricket calendar for the upcoming years is “scary”. He added that it is “difficult” for players to play so many matches.

“The schedule looking for the next five years is scary. I am glad that I am at the back end because it’s very-very difficult. I am obviously with the family; a lot of guys have young families as well. That’s going to be difficult… It’s very difficult at this level to try and compete (in) 80-90 games a year… That’s a lot of cricket,” said Warner to media.

Promoted

Warner on Sunday signed a two-year deal with Sydney Thunder. He will join the Thunder after his international commitments end at the completion of January’s Sydney Test and could be available for as many as five regular season matches – including the summer’s second blockbuster Sydney Smash against the Sixers – and the finals.

With AFP inputs