Tim Paine should be allowed to choose his deputy, feels Australia head coach Justin Langer

Newly appointed Head Coach of Australian cricket team, Justin Langer has decided to give Australia’s Test and ODI captain Tim Paine an opportunity to have his say while choosing his deputy. Langer feels that the captain should have a say while choosing his deputy, but also said that this might be a little controversial for others.

Australia is yet to name vice-captain in the longest format of the game, for assisting Paine in the job. Aaron Finch has been named as the ODI deputy while Alex Carey has been named the deputy to assist Finch during the one-off T20I and T20I tri-series against Zimbabwe and Pakistan.

Langer’s views on choosing the vice-captain

“My view has always been that the captain – and this might be a little controversial – should have a pretty big say in who the vice-captain (is),” Langer told Melbourne radio station SEN.

As per earlier reports, Pat Cummins was being considered for being Paine’s deputy in whites but nothing has been confirmed as of yet. Among others who were being considered for the role are Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Starc and few other senior players.

“You need to know as captain, or any leader, that your lieutenants have got your back and you trust them.  We’ve had some small discussions about it, but I’m the sort of person who weighs up all the information, talks to people I trust and then makes the decisions.

“There were four things I spoke to Pat about when he asked me if I was interested in (the head coaching position). The second one of those was that the captain is very important – (and) the captain and vice-captain relationship is very important.  We’ve got to learn from the past and make sure we get that right,” Langer said.

Meanwhile, Paine has been appointed as the ODI skipper only for the meantime, cricket Australia had said. With the World Cup less than a year away, their biggest challenge will be to replace Steve Smith with another responsible man at the helm.

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