Shane Warne not in favour of Steve Smith returning as Australia captain again: Report

Australian batsman Steve Smith was one of three cricketers who was temporarily banned from international cricket for his involvement in 2018 ball-tampering scandal. While Smith’s 12-month playing ban ended in 2019, his two-year leadership ban was lifted on Sunday. While prolific batsman is w eligible to lead Australia again, an Australian cricket legend does t want Smith to be made national team's captain again.

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Shane Warne lauds Tim Paine, describes Pat Cummins a replacement candidate

Australian spin legend Shane Warne believes that Steve Smith should focus on his batting instead of returning to captaincy. In an interview with an England-based news daily, spin wizard insisted that current Test captain Tim Paine should keep his job in meantime. He also said that re are or candidates (apart from Steve Smith) in Australian side to be considered for leadership role, in case if re is a dip in Tim Paine’s batting form.

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In interview, Shane Warne recommended mercurial pacer Pat Cummins as one of ideal candidates to become next Australian leader. Pat Cummins is currently ranked . 1 Test bowler in world in International Cricket Council (ICC) rankings. Cummins was also one of architects of Australia’s Ashes campaign in 2019 as pacer bagged 29 wickets in biennial event.  

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Tim Paine as Australian Test captain

Tim Paine was appointed as Australia’s Test captain immediately after Steve Smith's one-year exile from team. Paine famously steered Australia to a 2-2 Ashes-retaining draw in England in 2019. series also saw return of Steve Smith to Australia’s Test side, where batsman scored 774 runs across four matches at a Bradman-esque aver of 110.57.

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Australian presence in w-postponed IPL 2020

With continuous threat of coronavirus pandemic, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) delayed highly-anticipated Indian Premier League (IPL 2020) season until furr tice. tournament was originally scheduled to commence on March 29. Several top Australian stars like Steve Smith, David Warner, Pat Cummins and Glenn Maxwell among ors were slated to represent ir respective sides in India’s mega T20 carnival. Even long-retired Shane Warne is associated with T20 event as former cricketer is one of co-owners of a popular IPL franchise, Rajasthan Royals. However, Australian cricket will have to wait a while as IPL 2020 is likely to face furr delays going ahead.

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