‘Accidental captain’ has last

Tim Paine’s legacy as Australia’s test captain is assured after he achieved what higher-profile predecessors Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke failed to do – bringing home the Ashes.

If Don Bradman’s team of 1947-48 are The Invincibles, then Paine’s class of 2019 are The Unflinchables, who overcame the trauma of the ball-tampering scandal and the heartbreak at Headingley to become the first Australian men’s side to retain the urn in England in 18 years.

Dubbed the ‘‘accidental captain’’ after taking over in the aftermath of the sandpaper scandal, the understated Paine now takes his place alongside revered captains such as Mark Taylor, Steve Waugh and Bradman to have succeeded in England.

When Paine was appointed skipper during Australian cricket’s darkest hour, it’s doubtful even he could have foreseen being in the team huddle at Old Trafford 18 months later singing the John Williamson classic True Blue to celebrate a series win.

Entrusted by Cricket Australia with the job of bringing cultural change to the side in the wake of the sandpaper scandal in South Africa, Paine has done that and more.

Even as the critics circled after the stunning loss in the third test to a Ben Stokes-inspired England, the powers that be at Jolimont were unwavering in their belief in Paine. And the manner in which he picked his team up from the floor in Leeds to steel them for glory in Manchester is proof why.

There had been a funeral-like atmosphere in the Headingley rooms, according to one present, but hope was renewed after Paine reaffirmed to his side they had been the better team and were beaten by a freak performance by one man. We will beat them, he told his players.

‘‘In terms of what we’ve been able to achieve as a group, it is pretty satisfying from where we’ve come from in the last 18 months,’’ Paine said.