(SportsMax) – David Warner has set his sights on a return to international cricket following his first match on Australian soil since receiving a 12-month suspension.
Warner struck 36 off 32 deliveries for City Cyclones in a 50-over NT Strike League fixture in Darwin on Saturday.
The appearance marked his competitive return to Australian cricket amid the ban the 31-year-old is serving for his part in the ball-tampering scandal that marred March’s Test series in South Africa.
Warner, who will be eligible for next year’s World Cup and Ashes tour, pledged to be “100 per cent” ready for an international recall if selected.
“I’ll be putting my hand up as much as I can,” Warner told reporters. “This is just a little stepping stone to keep continuing my progress, to keep putting my hand up.
“I just have to keep scoring as many runs as I can for every single team that I play for in the next eight months.
“I wouldn’t be here today and continue to keep working my backside off to keep scoring runs for each team that I play for if I didn’t love it. I’d probably retire.”
Warner was due to face fellow suspended batsman Cameron Bancroft in his second NT Strike League appearance on Sunday, but the West Australian has been ruled out after top-edging a delivery into his throat while batting for Desert Blaze.
Bancroft was assessed by medical staff and taken to hospital as a precaution.
