David Warner’s century against Pakistan on the first day of the Test summer was a vintage knock by the opener, but one shot in particular was as good as it gets.
Warner got off to a flyer, reaching his half century in no time at all and bludgeoning boundaries for fun as he and Usman Khawaja put on 117 runs in the first session.
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Just before lunch, Warner somehow pulled off an absurd shot off the bowling of Pakistan’s fast bowling spearhead Shaheen Shah Afridi.
Getting down on one knee, Warner executed a T20-style pull shot-reverse scoop over his shoulder that sailed 87 metres into the stands at Perth Stadium.
Mike Hussey said on Fox Cricket: “This is not T20 cricket is it? How is he thinking about playing that shot in the first morning of a Test match?
“It’s unbelievable. They’ve got a deep fine leg as well so it’s not like there’s a gap down there. That’s an incredible shot.”
Pakistan great Wasim Akram added: “What a shot by him. That came out of nowhere. It wasn’t a short delivery. Who said he was out of form?”
Warner drops jaws with ABSURD six | 01:07
Afridi and Warner have shared plenty of battles in recent years, often meeting mid-pitch and sharing a laugh during their duels.
But the Pakistan speedster wasn’t in the mood this time around, brushing Warner when the Aussie veteran gave him a smile after he had a swing and a miss outside the off stump.
The pair crossed paths later in the field and nearly bumped into each other.
“Afridi just getting a little bit hot under the collar,” Hussey said.
Akram said: “I would have gone for the short ball. He didn’t like it all. Typical fast bowler response from the big man.”
Matthew Hayden said on Channel 7: “Warner gave a big smile to Shaheen. He didn’t like it. He didn’t like it. Normally Shaheen gives a smile back but not on that occasion.”
Former Pakistan paceman Waqar Younis said: “No self-respecting strike bowler would not have a word to say after beating the bat with the next ball.”
Warner brought up his 26th Test century off 125 balls after tightening up in the second session of the day.
It continues his remarkable record against Pakistan, having now scored six Test hundreds against the subcontinental nation.
He now trails only Ricky Ponting, Steve Waugh, Matthew Hayden, Don Bradman, Steve Smith, Michael Clarke and Allan Border on Australia’s Test century leaderboard.
In the ranks of Test openers, only Alastair Cook, Graeme Smith and Sunil Gavaskar have more runs than the 37-year-old.
Warner also has the highest strike rate of any Test batter who has scored more than 8000 runs.
If Pakistan’s last tour to Australia is anything to go by, Warner could fill his boots and edge even higher in the record books before he retires.
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