Paine in one-day frame
TEST captain Tim Paine is likely to get the nod as skipper when the Australian one-day squad to play England in June is announced today.
A new-look one-day side is set to feature plenty of wellknown faces as coach Justin Langer tries to replace suspended duo Steve Smith and David Warner and their 7774 ODI runs.
Batting replacements will come in the form of Chris Lynn and Usman Khawaja.
The defending World Cup champions have fallen to fifth on the rankings while England has assumed No.1 status and the series marks a building block for next year’s title defence.
But team mainstays Mitch Starc and Pat Cummins will miss through injury, leaving Andrew Tye and Billy Stanlake to carry the main bowling load with Josh Hazlewood.
Rising star Jhye Richardson, who made his ODI debut in January and toured to South Africa with the Test team, should retain his place while his namesake Kane Richardson looms as another option, having been handed a national contract last month.
An opening partner for Aaron Finch, who was favoured by many to be captain, could come in the form of Khawaja who played the last of his 18 ODIs in January last year.
But Big Bash bolters could also be in the frame with D’Arcy Short, who averaged nearly 50 opening for the Australian Twenty20 team earlier this year, and South Australian Jake Weatherald, on the back of a stunning century in the BBL final, also in the frame.
Weatherald, 23, was yesterday named in Cricket Australia’s National Performance Squad for 2018. Keeper Alex Carey, who made his ODI debut last summer and kept wicket in the T20 tri-series, could be named.
But the recent upheaval in Australian cricket, and the steady-hand Paine showed when taking over in South Africa, looks likely to land him the white-ball captaincy, and potentially the gloves in the short term.
After his appointment Langer was glowing in his praise for Paine who may not be the man in charge when the World Cup comes around next year, but could play a crucial role in helping the new coach bed down his ideals.
“I know the relationship between the captain and the coach are crucial. To me leadership is everything,” Langer said last week.
“Tim is a fantastic young bloke, I have loved him since he came in. He has got a bit of charisma, he’s fit, he trains hard, he’s a very good cricketer. I think he’ll be outstanding for the job at the moment.”
Australia plays the first of five one-day games against England at The Oval on June 13.