Justin Langer backs Australia ODI captain Aaron Finch to return to form
Australian coach Justin Langer has backed under-fire one-day captain Aaron Finch to return to form while declaring Glenn Maxwell is batting in the “perfect position’’ at No. 7.
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Australian coach Justin Langer has backed under-fire one-day captain Aaron Finch to return to form while declaring Glenn Maxwell is batting in the “perfect position’’ at No. 7.
While Australia lost a thriller to India by six wickets with four balls to spare at Adelaide Oval on Tuesday night as the three-match series was tied at 1-1, Langer said opening batsman Finch, who has made only six in both games and has been dropped from the Test team, would return to form.
“Finchy’s not far off from making some runs,’’ Langer said.
“He is working so hard and just needs that little bit of luck to turn things around.’’
The coach also tried to end conjecture about where all-rounder Maxwell should bat in the order after he made a brilliant 48 from 37 balls in Australia’s score of 9/298.
“There’s a lot of debate about Maxy, but I think that’s the perfect position for him,’’ Langer said.
“When Maxy can come in and put the finishing touches on like he does, for me it’s the perfect position.
“We’ve tried a lot of things over the past two years and we haven’t got the combination right, we haven’t had the success that we would like to and so we are trying different things.
“For me Maxy is probably the best fielder in the world, his energy is contagious and he’s got good leadership qualities as well.
“If he can come in and put the finishing touches on like he does it’s really nervous times for the opposition.
“So I think it’s a really good spot for him.’’
Langer also praised veteran batsman Shaun Marsh after his superb 131 against India — his fourth ODI century in his last eight innings.
“I thought Shaun and Maxy batted brilliantly and overall we were happy with the batting performance — two in a row actually,’’ he said.
“Marsh is turning into a great one-day international player and I am really proud of the way how, he was not selected for the next Test series against Sri Lanka, and a lot of guys under that sort of pressure can shrivel up.
“But he hasn’t, he’s stood tall, is working really hard, has had a couple of good innings now and I am really proud of Shaun.
“He is a leader of our group, an ultra-professional and will be a big part of our World Cup campaign.
“For him to get 131 in 40-odd degrees at 35 years old is a great tribute to him as well.’’
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