Australia needs captain Tim Paine far more than it thinks it does
The positive prognosis for Tim Paine’s finger complaint is good news for Justin Langer’s Australian side, because it needs him far more than it thinks it does writes ROBERT CRADDOCK.
Australia’s cricket selectors are crossing their fingers in the hope that Tim Paine can cross his for the rest of the summer.
There are any number of moving parts in the top six places in the order but Australia needs number seven to be a lock.
Paine says he will be fine for the Perth Test after receiving treatment on the index finger which had seven operations in as many years.
That is good news because Australia needs him far more than it thinks it does.
When Josh Hazlewood was recently appointed joint vice-captain of the Test team with Mitchell Marsh they were under instructions to serve rather than lead.
Australia pointedly wanted deputies happy to support the captain rather than secretly campaign for his job.
The thinking was in no way were they being automatically groomed for the top job.
Marsh is no longer in the starting XI, Hazlewood is best left to bowl and serve his captain, Aaron Finch and Peter Handscomb are fighting for their Test futures.
Usman Khawaja or Travis Head are not perfect choices but have appeal in different ways. Khawaja is the most established member of the top order, a state captain and a solid thinker on the game while Head, though just 24 and still on trial as a Test player, was a South Australian captain at 21 and a player of immense promise.
But Paine remains the best option.
Australia has lost three of four Tests since Paine took over from Steve Smith yet his star shines brightly.
At press conferences he has a Mark Taylor bearing about him where it is difficult to tell from his body language whether Australia has won or lost, just the sort of steadfast approach that anchors volatile emotions in a turbulent era.
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It should not be forgotten that he is doing a job that only four keepers in Australia history have done, none for more than eight Tests.
Ever since Don Bradman said “all things being equal a keeper has enough on his plate to worry about being captain’’ Australia has shied away from making a gloveman the skipper, the significant point being with Steve Smith sidelined, all things are not equal.
Even decorated figures such as Ian Healy and Rod Marsh never captained Australia in a Test.
Paine may have conceded 21 byes in the second Indian innings but that included some wild leg side work from Mitchell Starc that he would have needed a butterfly net to reach.
The best bits of his glovework are exceptional, particularly the elite art of taking catches over the stumps to slow bowlers where he is as good as any Australian keeper of the past 30 years.
Former Australian keeper Wally Grout spoke for keepers from all eras when he said “never give a sucker an even break.’’
He was essentially saying that if you are sore just keep playing to ensure you don’t lose your place to the man behind you.
Six decades later his words are still resonating.
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Originally published as Australia needs captain Tim Paine far more than it thinks it does
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