"It's going to be tough" - Mark Taylor casts doubts over David Warner ahead of first Test of the summer

Former Australian captain Mark Taylor has doubts over David Warner's Test spot ahead of the first match of the upcoming summer. The New South Wales lad reckons that a century in a winning effort in the fifth Ashes Test at the Oval would have sealed his place and allowed him to finish on his terms.

Warner's 285 runs in the 2023 Ashes series was a marked improvement to his output in 2019 when he averaged just 9.5. The left-hander scored a half-century in the fourth innings at the Oval when Australia were chasing 384 for victory. However, they fell short by 49 runs in the end.

Speaking on 2GB's Wide World of Sports Radio, Taylor feels Warner's innings of 60 will give selectors headaches about whether to pick him for the 1st Test of the summer. He said:

"Gee, it's going to be tough, that one, isn't it? I thought ... if he went out there and made a hundred and we won the game (in the final Ashes Test) he's inked himself in for the next three (matches) in Australia. The fact he made 60, got a good delivery, to be fair to him, and now we're not really sure what to do. There's something like four or five rounds of Shield cricket before that first Test."

Warner had announced ahead of the 2023 Ashes series that he is likely to retire after the Sydney Test next summer. He has a formidable home record, mustering 5139 runs in 55 innings at 58.40. The 36-year-old also scored a triple-century against Pakistan in the 2019-20 summer.

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Mark Taylor elaborates on the selectors' headaches

Mark Taylor. (Image Credits: Getty)

Mark Taylor further revealed that think tanks usually look at the future at the end of an Ashes series, elaborating:

"I reckon the selectors will be having a look at those Test matches and thinking, 'Now, do we keep David?'. We know what he can do. Or do we start thinking about the future? And that's going to be a real tough one. Normally at the end of an Ashes series, you start looking beyond and start saying, 'What's our side look like in two or three years' time?' That's going to be a real tough one, that."

Australia will face Pakistan in Perth in their first Test match of the 2023-24 summer.