England paceman Stuart Broad has pinpointed David Warner as Australia’s danger man in the Ashes series, while admitting a begrudging respect for his aggressive mentality.
The pugnacious opener fired up the tourists last month by comparing playing against England to “war” and said he planned to take “some sort of hatred” into the Tests, which start in Brisbane on November 23.
Broad said Warner, known for his fiery nature on the field, was a perennial danger.
“I think someone like Warner you’ve got to try bowl a lot of balls at him with the new ball, because it’s your best chance of getting him out,” he told the Sydney Morning Herald Thursday.
“(But) you have to have a plan B, and with someone like Warner you have to go to plan B quicker than a lot of other batters.”
While captain Joe Root said before leaving England that Warner’s comparison to war was “extreme”, veteran Broad acknowledged teams needed characters like him to make them great.
“He’s someone that drives teams forward,” Broad said of Warner.
“He’s one of those blokes who is not that enjoyable to play against, but if he’s in your team you love him.
“You have characters like that in most successful sports teams, don’t you?
“Someone who if he’s in the field, will stay in the battle, looking someone in the eye all the time, keep his bowlers moving ... someone who can take the game away from you quickly.”
He said these were the type of players he likes to face, “the sort of guys who spur you on”.
“You know that if you get it wrong to him he can hurt you, but it’s also extremely exciting if you get him out.”
Broad also sees prolific Australia captain Steve Smith, the top batsman in the world, as another player who needs to be toppled early, admitting he was tough to bowl at.
“He’s got huge scoring areas from straight, so I think we have to look for his outside edge up until day three,” he said.
“And then if the pitches start going slightly up and down or crack like the Gabba can do ... you can bring lbw in.”