Shame that a lot of failings around Australian cricket have been pinned on Justin Langer: Tim Paine
Australian Test captain Tim Paine has spoken out in support of under-fire coach Justin Langer. Paine expressed disappointment that the coach was facing a lot of flak when the Australian team as a whole had failed to deliver.
Justin Langer has been under intense scrutiny over the last week following Australia’s losses to West Indies and Bangladesh in successive white-ball series’. Missing most of their key players, the Aussies went down 1-4 in the T20Is to both the Windies and Bangladesh.
Admitting things have been tough for Australian cricket in recent times, Paine opined that it is unfair to single out Justin Langer for the team’s failings. Paine told SEN Hobart:
“There’s no hiding from it - it’s been a tough week. Certainly tougher for Justin Langer than anyone else (associated with the team). It’s been a bit of a shame the last week that a lot of the failings around Australian cricket have been pinned on JL. That’s certainly not the case. We haven’t lived up to our own standards on the field.”
Justin Langer was involved in a heated argument with a Cricket Australia (CA) staffer during the series against Bangladesh, raising further question marks over his coaching style.
Australia’s limited-overs captain Aaron Finch, however, termed reports of tensions coming from inside the dressing room regarding Justin Langer's coaching style as ‘disappointing’. CA too recently issued a statement backing Justin Langer.
"Really looking forward to the next six months with Justin Langer" - Tim Paine
Australia’s upcoming assignments include the T20 World Cup and the Ashes. Paine asserted that the ‘leaders’ in Australian cricket have had some concrete discussions on the way ahead. The Aussie Test skipper stated:
“We’ve had some robust conversations amongst our leaders in the last few days and we’re really looking forward to the next six months with JL - the World Cup and the Ashes. We head into those tournaments and series even more galvanized and even more together.”
Paine concluded:
“We are all on the same page, we are all trying to get better. We want to be the best team in the world and to do that you we have to have tough, robust conversations and we’ve done that in the last 24-48 hours. We’ve come out of it really pumped about what’s ahead.”
Australia have announced their 15-member squad for the T20 World Cup, with uncapped wicketkeeper-batsman Josh Inglis being the only surprise selection.