Sydney-November 20 (Online): Australia had all the momentum heading into the blockbuster Ashes series against England in less than three weeks — but that suddenly changed when a tearful Tim Paine quit as captain on Friday.<\/p>\n
Paine s bombshell announcement, prompted by an explicit text exchange with a female colleague, leaves Australia facing a leadership vacuum and takes the spotlight off an England team desperate to avoid discussing the cricket racism scandal raging in their homeland.<\/p>\n
Just this week, Australian pundits were relishing the prospect of the Ashes, saying the country s cricket “suddenly feels alive, armed and dangerous again” after a stunning T20 World Cup win.<\/p>\n
They now head into the Ashes at home without a captain who has redefined the role since his appointment in 2018, winning widespread praise for reforming a toxic team culture.<\/p>\n
The choice for replacement skipper appears to rest between Steve Smith — who was stripped of the armband after the Sandpaper-gate ball-tampering scandal — and paceman Pat Cummins.<\/p>\n
Cricket Australia said that Cummins, Paine s vice-captain, “looks set to become the first fast bowler to captain the Test side in 65 years”.<\/p>\n
But respected Indian cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle said Cummins workload meant Smith would likely get the nod, despite his tainted record.<\/p>\n
“I suspect Australia will have to go back to Steve Smith as captain,” Bhogle tweeted.<\/p>\n
“Pat Cummins would be a deserving candidate but as a large-hearted fast bowler who gives every spell everything he has, and plays all three formats, his workload will need to be managed.”<\/p>\n
Australian commentator Gerard Whateley said Paine s sudden, tearful departure would “sit extremely heavily over Australian cricket going into the Ashes”.<\/p>\n
“There will be a national sense of shock and trying to take it in and comprehend it, and then to forecast what happens next, it s extraordinarily difficult to take in,” he told SEN radio.<\/p>\n
England captain Joe Root faces his own issues, with calls for him to address the issue of racism in English cricket. The tourists are currently at a training camp in Queensland.<\/p>\n
“Keep in mind England cricket is in a full-blown crisis at the moment with the racism scandal that has been unearthed and their captain is not untouched by that,” Whateley said.<\/p>\n
He was “stunned” at the revelations involving Paine.<\/p>\n
“It runs completely counter to the manner in which Tim has always conducted himself in the public sphere — he has been a tremendously dignified and respectful captain,” he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Sydney-November 20 (Online): Australia had all the momentum heading into the blockbuster Ashes series against England in less than three weeks — but that suddenly changed when a tearful Tim Paine quit as captain on Friday. Paine s bombshell announcement, prompted by an explicit text […]<\/p>\n
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