"He can play Test cricket, there's no doubt about that" - Lehmann on Aaron Finch

​

Australia's former head coach, Darren Lehmann believes that Aaron Finch is a strong contender for the Test squad that will face Pakistan in a two-match series in UAE, this October.

Finch, renowned for his limited-overs expertise, has featured in 75 first-class games with over 4,000 runs under his belt at an average of 36.12. Lehmann highly adores the opening batsman and believes he has the technique to perform well in spin-welcoming conditions of the Emirates. Lehmann also acknowledged that Finch closed in on a Test call-up but "he just hadn't made runs consistently".

"He can play Test cricket, there's no doubt about that. He's confident in the way he plays spin bowling, he can take an attack on, and leading into this Pakistan series he's a really good chance to be selected for that one," Lehmann added while speaking to Geelong Advertiser.

With the Australian trio of Steve Smith, Cameron Bancroft and David Warner still banned from International Cricket for being involved in the Newlands ball-tampering fiasco, Lehmann feels Finch is someone who can bat as an opener given the ball is not expected to do a lot when the seamers are bowling.

" ... if you're playing in the subcontinent where the wickets don't seam that much, I'd open with him. But if you're playing in Australia, I'd bat him down the list ..." said Lehmann.

Currently, Finch is enjoying a purple patch in the Sheffield Shield: amassing 1278 runs for Victoria at 41.22 in the last three summers. Despite accumulating nearly 5,000 for his country on the international stage, so far, Finch is yet to represent Australia in a Test match and he feels there is no one else to blame but himself:

"I've got myself to blame for that (not playing Tests). When I was younger I had an opportunity to really push my case for a few years. I had probably 18 to 24 months of really lean four-day or any red-ball cricket to be honest," Finch said in an interview last month.

​