David Warner & Dean Elgar : Two Southpaw retirements create void in test cricket

  

Test cricket has lost two gritty left-handed openers through retirements which is going to have a big dent in the respective country's opening batting slot . While David Warner with his aggressive batting set up many a great Australia win , Dean Elgar with his gritty fighting qualities held together South Africa 's opening slot for a decade

Below we look back at the stellar careers of the two wonderful cricketers .

David Warner 

David Warner  brings down the curtains to his glittering test career with a 4th innings match winning 57 in a tricky chase of 130 vs Pakistan in the 3rd test at Sydney . It was a very successful test career of aggressive opening batsmanship . Warner almost a year back had already indicated that 2024 new years test will be his last . He was going through patchy form then so it was not certain whether he would make it to the Sydney test but a quality world cup ensured that he will retire on his terms . Warner scored 299 runs in his farewell series and with scores of 34 & 57 in a fabulous but hard earned Australia win ensured that he went out on a high .

Warner burst onto the international scene with a rapid 86 in a T20I vs a quality South Africa side in 2009 at MCG but then it was not expected that he will have a long and a stellar test career . However he started the test career well with a hundred vs New Zealand and followed up with a successful India series at home . After a successful start to his test career he never looked back 

Warner has an unbelievably good record at home averaging 57 with 20 test hundreds but no so impressive away record of 6 hundreds at 31 average . He did struggle both in England and subcontinent in test cricket but still had some significant contributions in overseas tests as well particularly in South Africa where also the batting conditions are  challenging .

At the absolute peak of his career Warner got involved in the infamous ball tampering scandal in a test in South Africa that drew a one year suspension by his own board . On return to test cricket he reeled off his highest test score of 335 not out vs Pakistan at home in pink ball test. 

Warner believed in aggression right from the start . He was brilliant through the off side with his drives and cuts and was a fierce puller against genuine pace . Later he developed his switch hits and reverse sweeps with great perfection.  His great range of shots helped him to score at a quick rate which helped Australia in many wins in test cricket .

Warner ended his test career with 112 tests . He hit 8786 runs at 44.60 average at over 70 strike rate . He hit 26 hundreds and 37 fifties . Even with such high risk game Warner pulled off a superb test career and proved that one can transform himself from T20 cricket to test cricket   without too much changes in the aggressive  mindset .

Warner has also announced his retirement from ODIs but has mentioned that if needed he will be available to play in the 2025 Champions trophy in Pakistan . However he has still kept himself available for T20Is and is looking forward to the 2024 T20I World cup in the West Indies and USA . 

Warner's retirement will definitely create a void at the top order in tests for Australia as they prepare to face the post Warner era from the home test series vs West Indies . Australia will miss the aggresive mindset in opening slot and whoever replaces Warner will have huge shoes to fill

Dean Elgar

Dean Elgar , former South African captain and the gritty left-handed opening batter who had announced his retirement from international cricket even before the two-match Test series  played against India finally bid adieu to international and test cricket after India series   . Playing a magnificent match winning knock of 185 runs in the first innings against India in the Centurion Test ,  Elgar, who was captaining in the second match, became the victim of Mohammed Siraj after scoring 4 runs in the first innings, while in the second innings, Mukesh Kumar got him  caught by Virat Kohli on the score of 12 runs. Thus Elgar did not have a great last test and had to settle for a series drawn result in his final appearance.  

 Dean Elgar was a gritty left-handed opening batter . Not the most aesthetic looking southpaw , Elgar did not attract much attention with his batting style that looked very awkward at times but he had enough range of shots and a  good defence to last for so long in international cricket.  As a batter Elgar's biggest attributes are his high levels of concentration, great temperament and resilient attitude. His wicket always had to be earned by the bowlers.   He used to be a man of crisis and his solidity and reliability up the order will now be dearly missed by South Africa .  His ability to battle it out on some challenging pitch conditions which he often used to get in South Africa  was one of his great strengths . 

 

  Dean Elgar bid farewell to  Test cricket at 36  after playing 86 matches.  This batsman, who started his Test career against Australia in 2012, has scored a total of 5347 runs so far.  Dean Elgar's biggest innings in this format was 199 runs which he scored against Bangladesh.  Elgar, who scored at an average of 37.92, scored 14 centuries and 23 half-centuries in Tests.  He also has 15 test wickets in his name in this format with his useful left arm orthodox spin bowling and took 92 catches as a very capable high quality fielder .   Elgar played only 8 ODIs for 104 runs at 17 average and didnt play any T20Is .