Australia opener David Warner fell three runs short of the first double century in domestic one-day cricket on Thursday, continuing a rich run of form which could earn him an international recall for the Ashes series next month.
Playing for New South Wales against Victoria in the semi-final of a provincial one-day tournament at North Sydney Oval, the fiery 26-year-old hammered 197 off 144 balls before being caught on the boundary.
The knock, which included 20 fours and 10 sixes, was the highest one-day domestic individual score, beating the 187 Jimmy Maher scored for Queensland against Western Australia in 2004.
With three centuries in four matches in the competition, Warner has accumulated 527 runs at an average of 75 - a run of form that will not have been missed by selectors with the first Ashes Test less than a month away.
Warner was left out of Australia's limited-overs squads for the ongoing tour of India and his international career remains precarious after a number of disciplinary offences.
Stood down after punching England batsman Joe Root at a Birmingham nightspot in the lead-up to the first Ashes series of the year, Warner missed out on the first two Tests.
That came three weeks after a highly-publicised Twitter rant against two Australian journalists which led to a fine and a dressing down from national governing body Cricket Australia.
Warner's innings on Thursday helped New South Wales to victory by four wickets and they will play Queensland in the final on Sunday.
Image: David Warner
Photograph: Matt King/Getty Images
