Four Players Who Can Be Australia’s Next T20I Captain
Jan 13, 2019 at 4:14 PM
The banning of David Warner has left Cricket Australia to take a decision on their new T20I captain.
Australia though have few ready to go materials and finding Warner’s successor may not be a difficult task.
Here is a look at players can succeed Warner as T20I captain of Australia:
Aaron Finch – Just like ODI format, he is also a contender to lead Aussie team in T20I format.
An aggressive top-order batsman, Finch has a strike-rate of 151.69 in T20I format and is one of the best openers in the shortest format of the game.
Since Steven Smith did not play any T20I contest since 2016, the captaincy of T20I format was always up for grabs.
David Warner seemed to be an automatic replacement for the job.
However, now with being ruled out, the responsibility might fall on Finch.
If given the job, he will succeed Warner and not Smith, practically.
Glenn Maxwell – Once out of the contention, Maxwell is all set to be a regular in the limited-overs format.
The 29-year-old all-rounder is running for the job of captaincy in T20I and ODI format as well.
His strike-rate (165.68) is much higher in comparison to Finch and given that he can bat anywhere and can bowl as well, Maxwell holds an edge over Finch in this format.
There can be a case when Finch might be given the job in ODI format and Maxwell in T20I format.
George Bailey – His inclusion on the list will not just mean that he will make a comeback but will also lead the side.
Bailey played his last T20I for Australia under David Warner in 2016.
He has played 30 T20Is in which he has scored 473 runs at 24.89.
Bailey has more experience than Finch and Maxwell and can be named the captain.
His name has come on this list after the reports suggested that he was one of the players on the standby list to fly South Africa for the fourth Test.
In the end, Maxwell, Matt Renshaw and Joe Burns were the three players who landed in the county.
D’Arcy Short – When George Bailey made his T20I debut, he was leading the side. Enough said.
Australia have never taken T20 format with utmost seriousness and Short might be given the job keeping next T20 World Cup in mind.
He made his T20I debut in the Trans Tasman Trophy and scored 196 runs in five innings.
He also hit jackpot in IPL auction – before he was yet to play for debut – when he was bought by Rajasthan Royals for Rs 4 Crore.
There are chances that he might be handed the job to lead Australia in the shortest format of the game.