Warner's Hundred debut stalls as Spirit are downed
It was his first appearance at the self-styled Home of Cricket since the Test match two years ago in which he was abused in the Long Room by members after Alex Carey controversially ran out Jonny Bairstow.
The former Australia Test opener spiced up his bow by criticising England hero Joe Root's batting, suggesting he "take the surfboard off his front leg", if he was to finally make an Ashes hundred Down Under.
But there was no obvious antagonism from the crowd when he ran out to open through a cloud of firework smoke as Spirit batted first.
Warner is one of the big names lured by higher paydays to add lustre to the competition, with Steve Smith and Marcus Stoinis also involved.
The 38-year-old is picking up Stg 100,000 ($A205,000) and the other two Stg 120,000 ($A246,000).
His high profile in England is clear from the event using his image in social media to promote the competition.
However, Warner was unable to follow the example set by his compatriots Grace Harris and Meg Lanning, who made 89 not out and 85 respectively in the preceding women's match in the double-header.
🗣️ "I'm pumped!"David Warner on playing for the London Spirit at The Hundred 🙌 pic.twitter.com/j4wCSTRqhQ— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) August 5, 2025
David Warner has a pre-match chat with Stuart Broad
He saw little of the strike early on as Spirit struggled to adapt to a slow pitch that took spin, and hit one four before his dismissal, caught at long-on trying to whack Jordan Clark's slower ball.
That left Spirit 3-26 from 31 balls and it didn't get any better, being dismissed for 80, the second lowest men's score in the competition's five years,.
Invincibles, the defending champions, cruised to victory with six wickets and 31 balls to spare, hitting the night's only six to win it
Ashton Turner was Spirit's top scorer with 21 but the Australian who did best was Invincibles' Jason Behrendorff who took 17-1 in his 20 balls, taking the wicket of Spirit captain Kane Williamson.
Afghanistan legspinner Rashid Khan was the star turn, taking 3-11 in 20 balls while Sam Curran claimed 3-18.
It wasn't just a London derby, there was also a West Australian coaching clash in which Tom Moody came out well on top against Justin Langer, though as the latter observed, he's barely had 48 hours to work with the team.
The coaching test will be where they are at when these teams meet again at the end of the league on August 25. Langer clearly has a lot more work on his hands than Moody, who's aiming for a three-peat with Invincibles.
AUSTRALIAN MEN IN THE HUNDRED
David Warner, Ashton Turner *Dan Worrell (London Spirit), Jason Behrendorff, *Nathan Sowter (Oval Invincibles), Hilton Cartwright (Southern Brave), Marcus Stoinis (Trent Rockets), Steve Smith, Riley Meredith, Chris Green (Welsh Fire).
*selected as an English-qualified player
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