Mitch, Usman in the frame

Paine’s the man for now, but who’s next

USMAN Khawaja is Queensland captain. Mitchell Marsh is in charge of Western Australia when he is at home.

An unlikely elevation to Australian Test captain could be in their immediate futures if the fallout from the ball tampering scandal escalates as most expect, and skipper Steve Smith is axed from the top job.

Tim Paine took over the reins in Cape Town last night after Steve Smith and David Warner both stood down, but Paine cannot be seen as a longterm solution.

And don’t worry about Michael Clarke’s offer that he could return “if asked by the right people”.

Clarke, who played his last Test in August 2015, with an extremely dodgy back, is yesterday’s man.

Australian cricket need him to be a hero.

The scope and scale of who was involved in the leadership discussion that decided balltampering in Cape Town was the way to go could determine who gets to toss the coin in the final Test in Johannesburg.

Most believe Smith, via his frank admission, can’t continue as captain. The word “untenable” has been used a lot. And when the investigation by Cricket Australia officials now on their way to South Africa is complete, he shouldn’t be captain.

But vice-captain Warner is also in the leadership group. If he was party to the decision to tamper, he can’t be in charge either.

The rest of the leaders change from tour to tour, but in South Africa they are bowlers Nathan Lyon, Mitchell doesn’t Starc and Josh Hazlewood. They can’t take over if they agreed with Smith that it was a good idea to unleash Test newbie Cameron Bancroft as chief ball scuffer.

Those guys will have to forever live with the stain of being party to cheating, if their roles are clarified, but are unlikely to lose their spots in the side. But none can be captain. That leaves Khawaja, who has struggled for runs this series and was probably staring down the barrel of being axed for the final Test, barring a second innings century.

The younger Marsh has only just re-established himself in the Test team after years of mediocre national returns too.

Should he be burdened with picking up a team flattened by such a chain of events?

Then there’s keeper Paine. When it comes to good citizens, he’s at the top of the pile.

He has been a revelation in his Test return, and his efforts behind the scenes as a positive influence on the team have been lauded.

And any omissions from the team — if Bancroft is axed — mean Peter Handscomb, the only spare batsman on tour, gets a start.