How David Warner became Stuart Broad’s Ashes bunny after another Test cricket failure in England

Death, taxes and David Warner being sacked by Stuart Broad in an Ashes Test – it’s becoming an all too familiar story for the struggling Aussie veteran as calls for his abolition intensify.

When Warner’s shock swipe saw him bowl through Broad for just nine minutes, it was the 15th time the England legend has dismissed his fierce rival in Test cricket. Nine of those have been single-digit with Warner.

Like Mike Atherton and Glenn McGrath and Alec Stewart and Shane Warne before him, Warner has become Broad’s Ashes bunny, each firing eerily reminiscent of the last.

Warner’s nightmare began in Durham in 2013 when Broad bowled him for just three with a brilliant, seamy delivery – and he’s fared little better in England since then.

Infamously, Broad did an absolute number on the Aussie in the 2019 Ashes, taking his wicket seven times in 10 innings, while Warner earned himself the unfortunate record of worst-ever average by an opener to go 10 innings in a series. play (9.5).

The England veteran, who has taken a staggering 584 wickets from 163 Tests, admitted it had been a bit of a struggle with his Australian foe, who managed to get two covering drives to the border before Broad found the inside edge with a shocking swipe .

‘It was a great battle,’ said Broad after the end of day two, with Australia 5/311, 82 runs behind England.

“He (Warner) had some really nice shots last night but we started this morning with four girls and it was actually the first ball I bowled with the shiny side on the outside because I tried to play him away and was not getting anything .

“I’ll take the brake because it’s a slow pitch and you have to keep hammering. It actually feels like a real layoff on a field like that.’

You could drive a bus through the gap between Warner’s bat and pad as the inner edge collided with the stumps, while bowling around the wicket to the attacking opener continues to reap rewards for speed.

Nor is it a case of an accidental wide ball, aiming it into the Aussie’s stumps before throwing up a fuller, wide ball has become a perfect tactic to trick him into foul.

Warner will undoubtedly go down as one of Australia’s best ever openers, with over 8,000 runs from just over 100 Tests, but has only a century from his past 32 innings and 18 scores of 15 or less.

Despite calls for his abolition continuing to mount for many months, the 36-year-old manipulated the selectors into a very awkward position after insisting he would play until the series against Pakistan early next year.

And one English veteran is ‘desperate’ for that to happen.

Atherton has the unfortunate record of batting most times against one bowler (19 against Glenn McGrath), and in a brutal swipe he spoke of his delight at having that mark broken if Broad continues to get one over Warner .

“I’m desperate for Australia to continue choosing Warner because of course I have the record,” he said on the Sky Sports broadcast.

“So keep picking Warner so that Warner creeps up towards the end of the series.”

But where did it all go so wrong for the Sydney left-hander?

It all started 10 years ago during the series he almost missed after punching Joe Root in a bar.

Simply put, it mostly relies on Warner cramping for space and spearing it into his stumps, or building up pressure with straight deliveries before throwing a surprising wide.

1st dismissal: 2013 – Durham, 1st innings – bowled (3)

Broad first gets Warner when he first opens in the series and falls out of favor after punching Joe Root. A straight from Broad came in and took away the top of Warner’s stump, a sign of things to come for a decade.

2nd Dismissal: 2013 – Brisbane, 1st Innings – Caught (49)

This was not a bit of bowling wizardry from the English Quick. Warner hit a short and wide right to cover with a lazy back-foot drive.

3rd Dismissal: 2013 – Brisbane, 2nd Innings – Trailing (124)

Warner had already done the damage with a century, but Broad got him in play for a second time after the Aussie lazily swung his bat to one, with a small edge landing safely in Matt Prior’s gloves.

4th dismissal: 2013 – Adelaide, 1st innings – caught (29)

Once again, a shocking lapse of judgment sees Warner clip a short ball straight to the point, with the Aussie too focused on aggression and not getting the ball right.

5th Dismissal: 2014 – Sydney, 1st Innings – Bowled (16)

Brilliant full throw by Broad, where the ball holds its line rather than tipping in, goes past the perimeter and crashes into the stump.

6th layoff: 2019 – Edgbaston, 1st innings – lbw (2)

And so begins Warner’s miserable 2019 Ashes series. Broad went fast, went full, and went BANG. Trap him right in front, and so perpendicular it was, there was no attempt to review the decision, even though he bowled from around the wicket.

7th Dismissal: 2019 – Edgbaston, 2nd Innings – Trailing (8)

Warner is in doubt whether to leave or play with a good length ball impaling his stumps. Instead, he sniffs one at the keeper after deciding too late to leave.

8th Dismissal: 2019 – Lord’s, 1st Innings – Bowled (3)

A cracker from Broad. Again he impales into the stumps, the ball moves a mile and guns into leg stump thanks to the huge gap between Warner’s tub and pad.

9th Dismissal: 2019 – Headingley, 2nd Innings – lbw (0)

Another ball coming in from Broad squeezes the seam, and Warner is beaten for pace and given LBW.

10th Dismissal: 2019 – Old Trafford, 1st Innings – Trailing (0)

Five times out of seven innings! Warner has second thoughts and decides to leave too late. A shorter, wider duck catches the edge and the Aussie is off for his second duck of the series.

11th Dismissal: 2019 – Old Trafford, 2nd Innings – lbw (0)

A pair for Warner, and who but Broad. Follows the same recipe as most of these firings, trapping the Aussie deep in his crease lbw by jabbing the pads. Three ducks in a row.

12th Dismissal: 2019 – The Oval, 2nd Innings – Caught (11)

Warner’s series of horribilis finally ends in the only way he knows how, nibbling a ball delivered from around the wicket at a good length that slopes in before holding his line.

13th Dismissal: 2022 – Sydney, 2nd Innings – Caught (30)

Three years later, but eerily reminiscent of his 2019 firings. Broad throws the fuller from wide onto the crease and then gets the ball melted away; catching Warner’s lead.

14th Dismissal: 2022 – Hobart, 2nd Innings – Caught (0)

It’s another pair in an Ashes test for Warner, with Warner unnecessarily whacking at a short, wide ball from the outside and hitting it to Ollie Pope on point.

15th Dismissal: 2023 – Edgbaston, 1st Innings – Bowled (9)

There’s no redemption yet for the Aussie to begin the current series, with an agricultural shot at a Broad’s seducer pulling the inside rim.

So, if not Warner, then who?

Warner’s wife Candice made the argument that there’s no one better to replace him, but it’s hard to see how a younger opener would fare worse.

It’s left-handed central, with Matt Renshaw and Marcus Harris with the England squad, while Travis Head could open if needed.

Experts, greats and fans were now in doubt about what to do.

Warner, for his part, is determined to get even more aggressive in England despite his form.

“I can probably be a little more aggressive and get back to the older me, handle them a little more,” he told reporters in December.

“It’s about having the comfort of supporting yourself, and I always do, but I felt a sense of responsibility to really adapt to the wicket and the conditions ahead, but now I’m just going back look to score and then my defense will come naturally.’