'It Just sells papers and clickbait' – David Warner's blunt remark on Ashes banter

Australia batter David Warner has stated that he doesn't want to be involved in a war of words with his English counterparts ahead of the Ashes. The veteran opener is known for his power-packed batting on the field and has grabbed many headlines for his off the field behaviour in the past as well.

Warner doesn't enjoy batting in Tests in England as far as his records are concerned. He was a subject to cold greeting in England after serving his one-year suspension for his involvement in the ball-tampering dispute. Warner could only manage 95 runs in 10 innings and fell frequently to Stuart Broad throughout the 2019 Ashes series in England. He anticipates the upcoming Ashes to be played in positive spirits much like modern cricket is these days.

I won’t be getting involved in any of the disputes: Warner

"I just sells papers and clickbait, so I won’t be getting involved in any of that stuff. I will leave it to themselves. Today there is no real banter in the field. It is just about playing quality cricket and trying to get the upper edge on each other. It is a lot more connected these days than before which I think is great for the game," Warner said as quoted by ICC.

Furthermore, Warner has struggled to score runs lately, except for a brilliant double hundred against South Africa in the Boxing Day Test at the MCG in 2022. He scored just 26 runs in three Test innings during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against India before getting hurt and flying back home. His first assignment before the Ashes will be a one-off Test against India, which will determine the new champion of the Test format.

The World Test Championship (WTC) final between Australia and India will mark the start of their red-ball season beginning June 7 at The Oval. The Ashes, on the other hand, is set to start on June 16 with the first Test at Edgbaston, Birmingham.