David Warner has revealed that he fears for the future of Test cricket and doesn't know what it will look like in five or ten years down the track.
The current Australian test opener believes more younger players will only focus on having a career on white-ball cricket rather than pursuing a test career and the converted baggy green.
This argument has been around since the introduction of T20 domestic leagues across the world. But, now with so much money being thrown around T20 competitions, many players have thought about just sticking to the lucrative limited-overs format.
The Indian Premier League is one of those main attractions. Players are getting paid in the millions to play a handful of games that only last three hours. West Indian stars Andre Russell and Dwayne Bravo no longer play test cricket because the amount of money they can make to play just three hours of cricket is poposutuorus.
Warner spoke at the Allan Border Medal night about his worries for the future of cricket.
"I was speaking to (Ollie Davies) the other day. He likes playing white-ball cricket, I can't see him playing red-ball cricket any time soon," Warner said.
"If he wants to put his mind to it, he can definitely play. But I've got a little bit of scaredness about what's going to happen in the next five to 10 years, where cricket is actually heading."
"I'd love for guys coming through to play red-ball cricket and play Test cricket because that's the legacy that you should want to leave behind."
Surprinsgly, Warner was an innovator when he was first selected in the test team. Back in his debut in 2009, Warner became the first man for Australia since 1877 to not play a first-class game before his test debut.
Having gone on to play a plethora of test matches since, he insists its something all players should strive towards.
"Playing in the Test arena is amazing. Pardon the pun but it's a true test of cricket and how well you measure up to the greats of the game."
Despite his words of wisdom, there will always be players looking for a payday straight away. Hobart Hurricannes superstar Tim David is one of those example. The middle-order batter earnt himself a $1.53 million payday in the IPL last year, having not made a name for himself in red-ball cricket.
