Warner confirms international retirement but leaves door ajar for Champions Trophy return

While confirming his international retirement, David Warner has left the door open to returning for Australia in next year's ICC Champions Trophy.

Warner announced his international retirement in parts over the last year. He retired from Test format in December 2023 after Australia's three-match red-ball series against Pakistan concluded.

He announced his retirement from the 50-over format after their record-extending sixth ODI World Cup in India last year.

Last month, his international career ended after the Baggy Greens crashed out of the T20 World Cup in the Super 8 stage.

However, Warner made himself available for the Champions Trophy 2025, which will be held in Pakistan in February.

"I will continue to play franchise cricket for a while, and I am also open to playing for [Australia] in the Champions Trophy if selected," he posted on Instagram.

In January, Australia's Test and ODI captain Pat Cummins gave his take on the prospect of Warner making a one-off return for the upcoming marquee event. He believes that the time is ripe to push other players and let them have a crack in the 50-over format.

"I think it's probably time to give some others a crack [in ODIs], but knowing that he's going to still be playing cricket. So it might be more of a kind of break glass in an emergency option. But, you know, David is going to be scoring runs somewhere in the world. So you never quite know that this is [the end]," he said in January.

Even though Warner has left the door ajar for a possible return to the ICC Champions Trophy, he officially confirmed his international retirement.

"Chapter closed!! It's been an unbelievable experience to play at the highest level for such a long period. Australia was my team. The majority of my career was at the international level. It's been an honour to be able to do this. 100 games in all formats is my highlight. I want to say thanks to everyone out there who has made this possible. My wife and my girls, who sacrificed so much, thank you for all your support," Warner wrote in his Instagram post.

"No person will ever know what we've been through. For all the cricket fans out there, I truly hope I have entertained you and changed cricket, especially tests, in a way where we scored a bit faster than others. We cannot do what we love without the fans, so thanks," he added.

During his playing days, Warner made 112 appearances in the Test format and scored 8786 runs at an average of 44.6. In red-ball cricket, he has 26 hundreds and 37 fifties as well.

In the T20I format, the southpaw batter played 110 matches and racked up 3277 runs at an average of 33.4 and a strike rate of 142.5. His impressive tally includes a sole ton and 28 half-centuries

In the ODI format, Warner has amassed 6932 runs at an average of 45.3. In 50-over cricket, he has a whopping 22 hundred and 33 fifties. His tally is only bettered by former Australian captain Ricky Ponting.