Ashes 2021-22, Gabba Test: David Warner falls for 94 as Australia nearly leads by 100

It has been a steady Day 2 for Australia in the opening Test of the 2021-22 Ashes against England at The Gabba in Brisbane on Thursday. While Australia nearly has a 100-run lead in the first innings, it was headlined by opener David Warner. However, he fell short of his 15th Test century by six runs.

Despite batting flawlessly, he was dismissed by pacer Ollie Robinson. A slower off-cutter delivery saw Warner going for the bog one and mistiming it, only to be caught comfortably by Ben Stokes at mid-off. Nevertheless, it was his 31st Test 50. He also scored his sixth 50-plus score at the venue, equalling Bill Lawry for the second most at the ground in the format by an opener, with Mark Taylor leading the list with eight. Notably, Warner was dropped on 48 by Rory Burns in the slips off the same man.

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It has been a rocky ride for Warner of late. He has mainly been poor, leading to him losing his captaincy and playing spot with Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021. He was also released by his franchise ahead of the IPL 2022 Auction, thus entering the auction pool.

However, he has managed to get some form back, especially during Australia's successful outing during the 2021 ICC T20 World Cup. He scored 289 runs in seven innings at an average of 48.16 and a strike rate of 146.70, including three half-centuries. He happened to be the second-highest run-scorer of the tournament after Pakistan's Babar Azam, while he also helped Australia win its maiden T20WC title.