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Paine to captain ODI team in England as new Aussie era starts
Paine to captain ODI team in England as new Aussie era starts
May 08, 2018 | 11:07 PM
Cricket Australia said yesterday that Test skipper Tim Paine will also captain the one-day international team during next month’s tour of England, but selectors are yet to decide who will lead the side’s title defence at the 2019 World Cup.Paine was named skipper of a 15-man squad for the five-match series as they look to open a new era after the ball-tampering scandal which led to lengthy bans for former test and ODI captain Steve Smith, his deputy David Warner and batsman Cameron Bancroft.Selectors have installed Aaron Finch as the ODI team’s vice-captain in place of the disgraced Warner and named the Victorian as captain of the Twenty20 side also released yesterday.Australia will play five one-dayers and a T20 match against England from June 13-27, a warmup for the global tournament in the same country next year, before heading to Zimbabwe for a T20 tri-series against the host nation and Pakistan starting on July 1.“Tim is a strong leader and will captain the side for this series, supported by Aaron,” selector Trevor Hohns said in a media release.“A decision on a permanent one-day captain will be made in due course.”Smith-led Australia across all three formats but there are concerns that such a burden could be too heavy for wicketkeeper Paine, who was hurried in as a replacement for Smith as test captain after the tampering scandal broke during the third test of the South Africa tour.South Australia’s Alex Carey, a wicketkeeper batsman, has been included in the ODI squad but Paine will retain the gloves in England.The squad features an uncapped player in D’Arcy Short, a left-handed opener who impressed in his debut T20I series against New Zealand in February, while test spinner Nathan Lyon has been recalled for the first time since 2016.“England potentially have a number of left-handers in their side and we look forward to seeing what (Lyon) can produce with the white-ball in English conditions,” said Hohns.Australia will be without leading pacemen Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins, who were injured during the calamitous series in South Africa and are not expected back until the test tour against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates. Josh Hazlewood will instead lead a rookie pace battery which includes Kane Richardson, Jhye Richardson, Andrew Tye and Billy Stanlake.The Twenty20 squad also features a pair of uncapped players, with Queensland all-rounder Jack Wildermuth and his spin bowling team mate Mitchell Swepson.Swepson, who was a surprise inclusion in Australia’s test squad for the tour of India last year but never played, replaces fellow leg spinner Adam Zampa.Hard-hitting batsman Nic Maddinson returns to the T20I frame for the first time in four years, with Carey appointed the squad’s vice-captain.SQUADS:ODI: Tim Paine (captain), Aaron Finch, Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Nathan Lyon, Glenn Maxwell, Shaun Marsh, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, D’Arcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Marcus Stoinis, Andrew Tye.T20: Aaron Finch (captain), Alex Carey, Ashton Agar, Travis Head, Nic Maddinson, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, D’Arcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Swepson, Andrew Tye, Jack Wildermuth.English tampering taunts won’t make Australia cry: LyonAustralia’s cricketers will just have to bear English taunts over the ball-tampering affair on tour next month for the one-day international series, spinner Nathan Lyon has said.Australia will bring a new-look squad led by test captain Tim Paine for the five-match series, with former skipper Steve Smith and vice-captain David Warner suspended for their parts in the scandal in South Africa.Offspinner Lyon, who was recalled to the ODI squad for the first time since 2016, said he expected England fans to take full advantage of recent events.“I’ve never played in England where they haven’t given it to us,” Lyon told reporters yesterday . “There’s no point taking some tissues out with us, we’ve just got to stand out there and cop it.”The series will be Australia’s first since the ill-fated tour of South Africa, where the scandal-plagued visitors slumped to a 3-1 loss.The tampering case resulted in year-long bans to Smith and Warner, with batsman Cameron Bancroft suspended for nine months. Head coach Darren Lehmann, who was cleared of wrongdoing, resigned and was replaced last week by Justin Langer.The damage to Australia’s reputation was far-reaching, with local fans disgusted and a major sponsor abruptly ending its support of the team.Cricket Australia has launched reviews into the players’ behaviour and its own operations, and Lyon said he hoped the England tour could be a fresh start.“It’s a good chance for Australian cricket to move on and a good chance for Australian players to rebuild the trust and faith of the Australian public and earn back their respect,” added Lyon, echoing comments from Langer’s first media conference as coach last week.Lyon has been picked to test England’s left-handed batsmen on their home pitches in a warmup for next year’s World Cup in the same country.“It’s well documented that I want to play in all three formats for Australia, that’s my goal,” said Lyon, who has played most of his international cricket in tests.“To get this opportunity and be included in the squad and to head over to England, where the World Cup is is being played that’s going to be a massive advantage.”
May 08, 2018 | 11:07 PM