Prepared and ready, Warner shushes the Bristol boos

The ball-tampering fiasco might be in the past for David Warner and Steven Smith but the boos aren't. Batting for the first time in international cricket since the expiration of their one-year suspension, the duo were up against a Bristol crowd that seemed determined to pick up from where the kindred in Southampton left last week. If the warm-up game against England saw Steven Smith answer the boos with a hundred, it was Warner's turn today.

The 32-year-old left-hander didn't look at his usual best to start with, but fought through difficult periods to finish unbeaten on 89 in a successful run-chase. Smith, on the other hand, made only 18 but remains crucial to Australia's run-scoring abilities.

That hostile English crowds would greet Warner and Smith was expected, given the fierce and historical rivalry between the sides. There's an Ashes series to follow after the World Cup too, so Smith and Warner's return to Test cricket, the format of the game that contextualizes the ball-tampering, still remains relevant. Which is why Australia did their homework before embarking on their latest World Cup journey.

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