No good comes of the wretched situation over Justin Langer’s future

No good has come of the confusion over Justin Langer’s future and good people’s reputations are taking a hit.

Australians coach Justin Langer has been left swinging in the breeze

This situation is unsalvageable. No good has come of it and good people’s reputations are taking a hit.

The Australian cricket team’s flight toPakistan departs in less than four weeks. The squad that will be travelling in first class is yet to be named, but it is coach class that is causing the biggest heartache.

And this really is heartache.

Pat Cummins lost skin on Thursday. It should have been a good day for the skipper, who was launching a climate change initiative on behalf of himself and 14 other elite players, but he ended up playing awkwardly at short balls.

He was asked straight up if Langer had the players’ support ahead of Friday’s board meeting where a decision is expected to be made on extending the coach’s contract.

Cummins said it was in “Cricket Australia’s hands” and “JL’s been doing a fantastic job”, pointing out that he was facing an evaluation process that they all go through.

Asked why he had not come out and answered if Langer had his support, the Australian cricket captain invoked the sentiments of the Prime Minister and said it was someone else’s job.

“I’ve got huge respect for JL, I’ve really loved working with him but it’s not my call,” he concluded.

This did not satisfy the pack, who asked again and Cummins, whose opinion was sought by the executive last week, deflected again.

His reticence on the topic speaks volumes. If he’d followed the path of our political leaders he would have thrown his arm around the current coach and said “this is my leader and I’m ambitious for him”.

Thankfully, Cummins has more dignity than to play those games, but Langer is a man who has enormous public support and the skipper finds himself in an invidious position.

It is impossible not to have sympathy for Langer even if he may have brought some of this on himself.

Most others would have walked away by now, but he is a proud man, a man who has done all that’s asked of him and one given to digging in further the more difficult things become.

That’s what made him an opener in one of the great Australian cricket teams.

At times his determination verged on self-harm. Ricky Ponting was once almost forced to declare and lose a Test in order to protect his opener from exposing himself to more danger after being concussed.

Polling conducted by News Corp has support for the coach at around 86 per cent and it is hard not to see why cricket fans back the passionate former batter who was, along with Tim Paine, critical to the rebuilding of the Australian team’s reputation after the sandpaper scandal and at the helm during recent T20 World Cup and Ashes successes.

A man who talks of his players as if they were family and devotes his every waking hour to Australian cricket, he will be broken by this situation and has so far responded in the manner to which those who know him expect.

He has changed his methods and when that has not worked he has stood his ground.

This is a wretched situation that is damaging all involved.

Coaches may have a limited time in the job, especially intense coaches such as Langer, but you ignore success at your future peril.

You also ignore the signals coming from the dressing room at your own peril. It is easy to keep things on track when everything is humming, but stress and strains are only a few losses on the subcontinent away.

Surely there was a path through this that didn’t leave men’s cricket with two of its most valued characters in this position: Cummins sounding like a politician and Langer swinging in the breeze.

The problem with getting this pig to market is it has suffered so much on the journey that there’s diminished value for buyer and vendor. Everybody has their nose out of joint. Langer for being subject to this protracted, public spat and the players for similar reasons.

No good can come from it now. Everybody is a little bruised.

The board meets on Friday, Langer is due to fly to Perth on Saturday where once again he will find himself sitting in a Perth quarantine hotel alone for weeks in an attempt to snatch a brief moment with his family.

If he is offered an extension of his contract after the board meeting, he will have time to brood on the situation and consider his options.

If those who make such calls opt to end the relationship, it will be a longer, lonelier introspection.

Tell me there wasn’t a better option than either of those situations.