The question on everyone’s mind is who will be the next ODI captain after Australia white-ball skipper Aaron Finch hung his boots from ODIs on Sunday following their triumph over New Zealand. When it comes to possible team members, opener David Warner tops the list of those who can assume the reins as Australia’s captain in the white-ball setting. Things are not going well for Warner as he serves the lifetime leadership ban that was imposed on him by the board at the time for his involvement in the sandpaper affair in 2018.
“The man next to me (Pat Cummins) is the key, he’s the Test captain. I’m sure he gets the first opportunity. Any opportunity you get asked to captain, it’s a privilege. For my circumstances, that’s in Cricket Australia’s hands. I can only concentrate on what I have to do and that’s using the bat and trying to score as many runs as I can,” said Warner, as reported by Sydney Morning Herald. “My phone’s here [if CA wants to call for a talk about leadership]. What’s done is done in the past. The good thing is there is a new board that has come along. I’m always happy to sit down and have a chat, and talk about anything they need to talk about. I’m just happy, enjoying my cricket and putting my best foot forward for the team,” he added.
Meanwhile, Cummins stated that it is not “realistic” for a fast bowler to captain in all three formats and called Warner a “fantastic leader”. “If you were going to do all the formats and every game, I don’t think that’s realistic. Especially as a fast bowler, I think you do need to find windows to rest. I think you could manage that as well,” Cummins said. “It’s not our decision to make but Davey is always a fantastic leader around the team. He makes my job as a captain very easy. I don’t know the first thing about batting so having guys like Davey there to look after that is great,” he added.
