'Australia always plays for the win and not for personal performances': Dean Jones on David Warner missing his 400

It was a heartbreak, ain’t it! Just when you thought you were in for something special, something that is too colossal for anyone to achieve in his dreams, let alone real life. 400- Yep! The highest individual score in the history of this beautiful format of International cricket. Brian Charles Lara’s World Record- who, by the way also happens to be record-holder for the highest individual score in First-Class Cricket (501)- was threatening to be overhauled by champion opener David Warner (335 not out).

Until Tim Paine decided to squash any hope that you had of witnessing the a-once-in-a-lifetime moment when he declared the Australian innings at 6-589. ‘Should Paine have waited considering the form of the Pakistani batsman and the relentlessness of their pace attack?’,  ‘Also, considering Warner had shifted gears substantially post his triple hundred, it wouldn’t have taken much time?’

Fans came up with such questions on Twitter post the declaration while some of the users subsided with Paine and lauded him for always keeping the best interest of the team ahead of individual feats, considering the fickle nature of the Adelaide weather and a gloomy forecast.

Dean Jones gave a fitting reply to David Warner’s fan on Twitter

Former Australian batsman, Dean Jones, who incidentally had his record of being the highest run-getter for Australia in a Day/Night First-Class fixture at the hands of Warner, was in the latter category. After the declaration happened one fan took to Twitter where he expressed his heartbreak on the fact that David Warner was not given the opportunity to go for the world record.

Replying to the fan, Dean Jones said, “Australian teams always play for the win! Not about personal performances.” This is not the first time when the Australians have displayed such a mindset (of not going for personal milestones). Back in 1998, the then Australian captain Mark Taylor, whose triple hundred also came against Pakistan in Faisalabad, declared overnight at the score of 334 purely because he did not want to overhaul Bradman’s record of being the highest individual scorer for his country.

Australian teams always play for the win! Not about personal performances https://t.co/NCcSmklwDi

— Dean Jones AM (@ProfDeano) November 30, 2019

Brian Lara’s record stays intact

That record was, however, broken five years later when former opener Matthew Hayden shellacked a hapless Zimbabwe bowling attack to the tune of 380- the highest individual score in Test cricket at the time. Hayden’s 380 was overhauled by Brian Lara, a few months later in 2004 when the Prince of Trinidad became the first cricketer to score 400 runs in a single inning of a Test match.