Cricket superstar David Warner ‘made a mistake’ when drink driving

One of the country’s greatest batsmen was both foolish and reckless when he drove on Easter Sunday after having a few glasses of wine with friends, his lawyer says.

When taken to Maroubra police station for a second test, the 39-year-old reportedly blew a blood alcohol level of 0.104 – more than double the legal blood alcohol limit.

The former Australian Test opener and current Sydney Thunder Big Bash captain was charged with mid-level drink driving.

He was not required to appear at Waverley Local Court on Thursday when his case was first mentioned and quickly adjourned.

Warner has not yet entered a plea, but his attorney Bobby Hill foreshadowed a guilty plea at a later date when he spoke outside court.

“He knows what he did was wrong,” he said.

“He accepts that this was a reckless decision, a foolish decision to get in his car rather than take an Uber.”

The Fox Cricket commentator had had three glasses of wine at a friend’s apartment before making that decision, Hill said.

“It is not a crime to drink a glass of wine on the day of the Lord’s resurrection. In fact, some would consider it completely appropriate,” he told reporters.

“His crime, as I said, is choosing a foolish plan A instead of a plan B.”

Hill said Warner’s last drink was 11 minutes before he was stopped by police, who are accused of taking 52 minutes to administer the second breath test.

The cricket star is remorseful and will therefore ask for leniency, but he expects to be punished as any other NSW citizen would, Hill explained.

“This case before the court reminds everyone in the public of the dangers of self-assessment,” he said.

“I know David is looking forward to putting this matter behind him and focusing his efforts on contributing back to the people of the community.”

The charges have cast doubt on his Thunder captaincy.

“The allegations are obviously concerning and we take them very seriously,” Cricket NSW chief executive Lee Germon said after his arrest.

“At Cricket NSW we are strong advocates of safe driving, not drink driving.”

Warner was arrested while on an Easter trip home from the subcontinent, where he was captaining the Karachi Kings in the Pakistan Super League.

He returned to Pakistan after being ordered to resume the T20 tournament where he averaged 51.2 with the bat.

Warner was a swashbuckling opening batsman and aggressive run-scorer for the national team until his retirement from Test cricket in 2024.

He scored 8786 runs at an average of over 44 across his 112 Tests, with a career high score of 335 not against Pakistan.

But Warner made headlines for all the wrong reasons when he was one of three Australian players suspended following a 2018 ball-tampering scandal in South Africa that rocked the cricket world.

An investigation by Cricket Australia found that Warner, who was vice-captain at the time, masterminded a plan to change the condition of the match ball with sandpaper and brought in rookie batsman Cameron Bancroft to carry it out.

Warner was banned from international and domestic cricket for twelve months and permanently ineligible for team leadership positions.

Warner’s case will go to trial on June 24.

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