Warner speaks about international return

Banned opener David Warner will return to professional cricket this week as he targets a comeback to the national side once his 12-month suspension ends in March.

In a rare interview in Dhaka ahead of the start of the Bangladesh Premier League, the former Test vice-captain said he's looking for good performances in the BPL and Indian Premier League ahead of a possible recall to the national side for this year's World Cup.

The bans of Warner and Steve Smith both end in late March and there's a possibility they could be available for Australia's ODI series against Pakistan in the UAE, the dates of which are yet to be confirmed.

Warner said he's only focused on the BPL and a return to the IPL – he missed last year's tournament after the Cape Town scandal – and will wait for national selectors to make a call on his international return.

"It is up to the selectors whether or not they want to pick me," he said after he was unveiled as captain of the BPL franchise Sylhet Sixers.

"At the end of the day, all I can do is score runs in this tournament and the IPL, keep putting my hand up and making sure that I am the best person I can be."

Warner and Smith are both taking part in the seven-team BPL, but the left-hander played down any rivalry with his former Test skipper.

"I will just treat it as another game," Warner said of his clash with Smith's Comilla Victorians side.

"It is not just taking on one player but taking on a team of eleven players. It is about making sure that our bowlers know how to get Smith out, and then tackle the rest of the guys."

Speaking about his ban for the first time since Smith and Cameron Bancroft gave much-publicised interviews during the Boxing Day Test, Warner said his one-year absence has allowed him to "grow as a human being" and spend more time with family.

"Life has been good for me," he said after he was unveiled as captain of the BPL franchise Sylhet Sixers.

"I have been spending time with the family. I wouldn't be able to do that if I wasn't sitting in the sidelines.

"It is about getting the best out of myself and growing as a human being. My most important thing was being a father and husband at home.

"Now it is down to playing cricket again and making sure I get Sylhet Sixers on top of the table."

Warner returned to franchise-based cricket in June last year when he played in the inaugural Global T20 tournament in Canada before travelling to the West Indies to play in the Caribbean Premier League.

During this period he also played Sydney Premier (club) Cricket with the BPL set to be his final professional tournament before his ban expires in late March.

The 32-year-old says his recent club cricket games for Randwick-Petersham have provided him with an ideal build-up to the traditionally slow and low wickets of Asia.

"I was having a conversation with Waqar (Younis, Sylhet coach) today about playing club cricket in Australia at the moment," he said.

"The wickets are quite low and slow. It has been tough to adapt to those conditions, but I have had a very good run of form at home and having played here … (in Bangladesh) before, I know what the wicket is going to be like.

"So, for me it is about getting into a routine and rhythm and making sure I can lead from the front, from the top. So, it makes it easy for the guys coming in.

"I am extremely grateful to be leading the side. For me it is about making sure that we as a whole, including the support staff and management, can get the best out of the players.

"I have to make sure I am doing my job right, which is scoring runs and leading the guys on the park."