Paine told he needs to clean up his act
The author of the root-and-branch review into the culture of Australian cricket has applauded Tim Paine for apologising after his ‘‘lapse of judgment’’ in the third test but said it’s how the captain and his team behave in Brisbane that will count for more.
Philosopher Dr Simon Longstaff’s challenge to Justin Langer’s men came as the national coach acknowledged their behaviour was now under the microscope as a result of the high bar they had set in the wake of the ball-tampering affair.
The heightened scrutiny on the side was evident in the reaction to Steve Smith’s shadow batting while fielding, which was interpreted as sharp practice by critics overseas, prompting Langer to confront former England captain Michael Vaughan for his ‘‘out of line’’ remarks,
When Paine leads his players onto the Gabba today, it will be more than the Border-Gavaskar Trophy on the line for an Australian side which had its report card blotted for the first time since the sandpaper affair in South Africa.
Appointed with the mandate to clean up the team’s on-field conduct, Paine was in hot water with officials for his expletive-laden outburst at umpire Paul Wilson then angered many fans after a heated verbal exchange with India’s Ravichandran Ashwin.
Dr Longstaff, whose damning review into Cricket Australia triggered sweeping changes at head office, is encouraged by Paine’s public mea culpa as it showed there was no ‘‘normalisation of deviance’’, where mistakes of greater magnitude occur because the initial error was overlooked.
‘‘Under these extraordinary circumstances you understand people can make a mistake then you see what is their response,’’ Dr Longstaff told the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.
‘‘Do they take responsibility? Do they show evidence of remorse? Are they willing to work on this?
‘‘I think all of those things were evident in Tim Paine’s response yesterday.
‘‘He’s had some time to think about it, work out what the appropriate thing to do and I hope he builds upon that.’’
The bigger test, he said, beckons in the pressure-cooker atmosphere of the deciding fourth test at the Gabba starting today.
‘‘It’s not what you do when you’ve had the chance to have a shower to think about it, it’s what do you do in the preparation and when you step onto the field,’’ Dr Longstaff said.
‘‘Remember it’s not Tim Paine as an individual but the team that he leads now that will give, by their conduct, an indication of the quality of his leadership and that of the leadership group around him.’’
Bemused by the fallout after Paine’s first mistake in nearly three years, Langer is standing by the man who has led the test side throughout his reign as coach, saying the captain has his ‘‘100 per cent support’’.
The Australians have discussed the events of the emotioncharged Sydney test and vowed to learn from their mistakes.
‘‘We don’t shy away – the captain got up publicly and put his leadership on the line yesterday and said ‘that’s not how we do it’ and that takes great courage to do that,’’ said Langer.
Australia head into the test without opening batsman Will Pucovski, who has been ruled out because of a shoulder injury he sustained while fielding in his test debut for Australia at the SCG.
Marcus Harris has been drafted into the starting XI and will open the batting with David Warner at the Gabba.
It’s the only change to Australia’s lineup from a dramatic third test.
The India selectors will also be forced into changes because of injuries. The series is tied 1-1 with one match to go.
Harris hasn’t played a test match since the 2019 Ashes series but has been travelling with the Australian squad throughout the test series with India, having to wait for his recall.
Fellow openers Pucovski, Warner and Joe Burns were all given starts and Matthew Wade filled in as a makeshift opener for the first two matches.
Pucovski hurt his shoulder on Monday and was discomforted enough that he didn’t bat in the nets on Wednesday or yesterday.
India will be forced into changes to their starting XI, with allrounder Ravi Jadeja undergoing surgery on his thumb after the third test and other players, including pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, struggling to recover from injuries.