Paine should not be the scapegoat

Melbourne – Former Test batsman Peter Handscomb leapt to the defence of Tim Paine yesterday as the Australian captain came under fire in the wake of the series loss to India.

India’s dramatic triumph in the fourth Test at the Gabba on Tuesday led to a great deal of soul-searching in Australia and some of the country’s pundits have turned the spotlight on Paine’s leadership.

The 36-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman has led the Test side since Steve Smith was sacked in the wake of the 2018 Newlands ball-tampering scandal and has said he would like to return to South Africa as captain next month.

“I can’t believe the fallout from this Test is his captaincy, that’s an absolute joke,” Handscomb, who played his last test in 2019, said.

“The poor guy is batting beautifully, making good runs, taking the game on and leading with intent.

The whole team is there and everyone is trying to do their best, it’s a bit of a joke that the takeaway seems to be his captaincy.” –