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.
Six of New Zealand’s top women’s sailors are vying for a place on the SailGP team headed by Peter Burling and Blair Tuke.
Once Burling and Tuke complete their America’s Cup programme with Team New Zealand in March their attention will quickly turn to the 50-foot foiling catamarans and the global circuit that New Zealand will join starting in April.
SailGP, headed by New Zealand yachting great Sir Russell Coutts, is dedicated to improving diversity and getting women crew involved is a priority.
The New Zealand process is already under way with Alex Maloney, Molly Meech, Gemma Jones, Jo Aleh, Liv Mackay and Erica Dawson attending a training camp at Manly, north of Auckland, last weekend to begin a selection system.
Two will be chosen to go to a Bermuda training camp on the F50 catamarans in April, and one woman will then be named to join the New Zealand SailGP crew that is headed by Burling and Tuke.
Meech, who won a silver medal with Maloney at the last Olympics in Rio on the 49erFX skiff to go with their 2013 world championship, sees the move as boosting a professional pathway for women sailors.
‘‘As soon as SailGP came out and said this was part of their vision for the future I got quite excited,’’ Meech told Stuff.
‘‘Having the best sailors around the world competing in similar boats . . . it’s an awesome circuit and any opportunity to be involved is really cool.
‘‘This is the start of it and it will be really exciting to see where it goes, having females involved. But it’s awesome to see a pathway post-Olympics.
‘‘It will be a steep learning curve for all of us, but we’re up for the challenge.’’
Meech and Maloney have a juggling act, already being named in the New Zealand Olympic team for this year’s postponed Games in Tokyo. They are not alone in that department. Dawson is also in the Olympic mix, sailing the foiling Nacra17 catamaran while Burling and Tuke will defend gold in the 49er.
The F50 catamaran has a fiveperson crew with two dedicated grinders. The boat has been modified from the design used in the 2017 America’s Cup in Bermuda.
It’s likely the female involvement will come on the wheel, trimming the wing sail, or controlling the foils – all highly technical roles.
There’s mixed experience in terms of foiling among the women’s squad but huge ability abounds and Tuke is adamant this is the start of something big for women’s sailing in professional terms.
‘‘I think we’re pretty fortunate here in New Zealand, we have a great talent pool of world-class women sailors,’’ Tuke said.
‘‘They have all proven to be fast learners and with the right opportunity they can step up.
‘‘Give them time on the boat in a training environment to begin with in those key roles . . . this is just the start really. The league and this New Zealand team are pretty driven to make sure it works and that we get some good results.
‘‘With professional sailing,