Ricky Ponting on David Warner’s protracted struggles against Stuart Broad: “More of a mental battle than technical.”

As the southpaw is battling against veteran pacer Stuart Broad in the current Ashes, David Warner’s performance is a hot topic.

His future in the longest version of the game currently appears dismal because he has only been able to score 141 runs in six innings. Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting claims that Warner’s struggle has now turned into a mental one because Broad has dismissed him three times in the series and 17 times altogether.

The 48-year-old said there has been a lot of discussion over Warner’s performance in recent days, and he thinks that if it weren’t for Broad, there would not have been as much commotion. He advises the squad to continue using the cricketer from Paddington, nevertheless, since he believes he will improve.

“I know there’s been a lot of discussion in the last couple of days since Headingley ended, and I think what’s more important is that Broad is the one who’s taking him out. In the most recent episode of The ICC Review, Ricky Ponting said, “I think if it were anybody else, the noise probably wouldn’t be quite as loud. However, the fact that he battled to get past the opening spells of Broad a few times in this series again makes it a little bit more of a worry.

“When someone has successfully taken you down 17 times, the struggle is no longer primarily technical but rather psychological. But purely based on the series, I’d probably remain with David Warner,” he continued.

Notably, the Australian management has Marcus Harris to turn to if they decide to bench Warner for the final two Tests. Harris’ chief selector, George Bailey, had high hopes for him going into the series; thus, the squad may decide to give him a chance. Warner, however, has the essential expertise because the visitors will be desperate to keep the urn.