India vs Australia 2019: 'Will pick Finch every day of the week,' says Darren Lehmann
What's the story?
Former Australian cricketer Darren Lehmann has backed struggling opener Aaron Finch to open the innings for his country in the upcoming ICC Cricket World Cup to be held in the UK. Lehmann gave this statement at the event announcing his return to coaching with the Brisbane Heat.
The background
Finch has been in dismal form of late, having failed to even register a half-century in his last 21 innings for his country. This has raised many concerns regarding his place in the squad.
Finch was a consistent part of the setup under Darren Lehmann and the duo have been a part of many successful games.
Lehmann's encouragement should provide a truckload of confidence to Finch who showed signs of returning to form with an impressive 37 against India in Nagpur.
The details
Speaking about Finch, Lehmann said, "The World Cup's not now is it, I'd give him plenty of time to prove he's right and once he's in form I'm having him at the top of the order."
Finch played a major part in Australia's success in the previous World Cup and Lehmann reiterated the same. "I'm picking Finch every day of the week ... people forget what happened in the last World Cup. They (Finch and David Warner) dominated."
Coming to Lehmann himself, the former Aussie coach has signed a two-year deal with the Brisbane Heat which will see him return to coaching after the infamous ball-tampering scandal last year.
What's next?
Australia will now take on India in the 3rd game of the five-match series; a match they must win to stay afloat.
Finch looked to be getting some of his form back in the previous ODI and he needs to ensure he makes a big score to silence some of the critics.