David Warner slammed by former Australia selector for daring to declare his Test successor

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David Warner has been criticised by former selector Jamie Cox for naming his successor during Australia's second Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). After the end of Day 1 play of the Boxing Day Test, Warner asserted that Marcus Harris should start opening for Australia once he retires from Test cricket after the third Test of the series in Sydney.

The criticism from Jamie Cox comes weeks after Mitchell Johnson's scathing attack on retiring David Warner made headlines. In a newspaper column, Johnson questioned Cricket Australia (CA) and chief selector George Bailey for giving Warner the privilege to play a farewell Test series despite his struggles as Test opener and his role in the embarrassing ball-tampering scandal which brought shame to the country.

“Well bugger me - another modern first! I have never heard of a current player anointing their successor. What’s wrong with 'that’s a question for George Bailey not me’? I need a lie down ...!” Cox wrote on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.

Replying to a question from a journalist, the 37-year-old backed Harris by pointing out that the 31-year-old southpaw has been waiting in the background for a while. He also added that the Perth-born cricketer was not very different from him in his style of play.

“Look, it’s a tough one. It’s obviously up to the selectors,” Warner, who hit a hundred in the first innings of the first Test in Perth, said on Tuesday.

“But from my position I feel like the person who’s worked their backside off and has been there for a while in the background (is Harris).

“Harry’s been that person, he’s toured ... he scored a hundred the other day and he missed out in a couple of other games, but he’s always been that person who was next in line.

“If the selectors show their faith in him then I’m sure that he’ll come out and play the way he does.

“He’s not too dissimilar to me. If he sees it in his areas he goes for it and plays his shots, and I think he would fit well.”