Adam Gilchrist weighs into the Warner-de Kock controversy

Australian vice-captain and swashbuckling opener David Warner’s history of being in the news for wrong reasons has been elongated with another incident. According to a CCTV footage released after the end of play on Day 4 of the Durban Test between South Africa and Australia, Warner can be seen being physically restrained by his teammates while directing a verbal barrage against South Africa’s Quinton de Kock.

The incident occurred when players on both sides were walking back for tea. Just before Tea, he was seen showering Aiden Markram with a long emotionally-charged spray of words after he was on the non-striker’s end when AB de Villiers was run out for a duck.

However, the reason for the heated argument and Warner’s reaction is unclear. One of the few people who think Warner’s behavior was a reaction to a personal attack is Australian great Adam Gilchrist. It is now being reported by several Australian reporters that it was a result of an alleged barb about his wife Candice.

Gilchrist jumps at Warner’s defense

Gilly, on Twitter first said, “ Ugly scenes in Durban. Can only assume something very personal has been throw at @davidwarner31 for this type of reaction. Not a good look all around.”

He further weighed into the controversy saying, “I think with Davey…there is no one denying his capabilities with the bat in hand. It’s funny…he came into cricket and had his natural aggression mindset both with the bat in hand and in the field,” Gilchrist told radio station SEN, as reported by Sydney Morning Herald.

“He used to pride himself being the guy that got into the verbal stoushes and was a leader of the aggressive mindset. But he then went the other way and he was very, very outright in saying ‘I’ve put that away, that’s not me anymore’.”

Since it was a commonly held opinion that Warner had mellowed down after being handed the responsibility of vice-captain and his seniority in the team had influenced him to confine his aggression to the field only, Gilchrist mentions that his teammates are aware the ‘old Warner’ is back.

‘Old Davey’s back’

“It was really extreme the opposite way, and now he’s come back again saying ‘old Davey’s back’ and all his teammates are saying ‘the Reverend’s gone, Bull’s back’. It’s always a worry in any situation when someone is so extreme in one direction or the other. I think Davey’s got to find somewhere in between that.

“He does pride himself in being a leader of the team, he did that very well in the T20sI as captain but what we’ve seen in the last 24 hours probably isn’t the images that you want your captain projecting.”

Gilchrist also said he could thank his teammates for not letting things get further out of hand. Understandably so, because the cricket fraternity has witnessed what has happened when things get out of hand and the heated exchange goes beyond words and extends to brawls and punches, as seen in the recent case of Ben Stokes and Warner himself when he punched Joe Root.

“If they were not there and he goes on the path that he was intending, who knows what would have happened. Watching that, once the emotion and the aggression are taken away from it David has to be a little bit disappointed that he ‘s done that and allowed this whole discussion to start up,” said Gilchrist.