Pat Cummins brings a real calmness to the squad: Aaron Finch

The idea of appointing Pat Cummins as a solitary vice-captain for Australia was backed by Australian ODI skipper Aaron Finch, the reason being the fast bowler’s calmness and his ability to bring a different perspective being a fast bowler.

If Aaron Finch misses out on a game due to any particular reason, Pat Cummins will become the first fast bowler to lead Australia in an International Cricket match since Ray Lindwall in 1956, when he led Australia in a Test against India .

Finch said, “That was one of my recommendations on the back of the South Africa tour [in March], just try to streamline the process a little bit more, especially on the field. We feel as though Patty has everything covered off the field as well, but just on the field having that one direct line for me is really important.

“At times if you have seven or eight guys going to three or four people sometimes it can feel a little bit clouded and you just get to a point where you have so much advice. So for Pat to be able to filter that out on the field will be a huge help.

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“The great thing Patty brings is a real calmness to the squad and he’s someone who over the years has been able to separate the off-field stuff with his on-field performance and manages himself really well. He brings a different perspective being a bowler as well, with the traditional captains and vice-captains being batsmen, so to have that real close connection to the bowlers is really important as well.

Cummins’ appointment as vice-captain would mean that wicketkeeper-batsman Alex Carey, who was in line to be the next vice-captain having shared the duty in the past, misses out.

“That’s taking nothing away from Alex – he did a fantastic job – we just feel that going back to one vice-captain is probably the way forward and simplifies things out in the field when you have one direct line to a vice-captain rather than going to a few different others,” said Finch.

National selector Trevor Hohns said the following after Australia’s 21-man squad for the England tour was announced last week, “After taking advice and reviewing the leadership of the squad we have decided to revert back to the traditional captain and one vice-captain setup. Alex remains a genuine leader within the squad and will continue to provide valuable support to Aaron as skipper. Pat is very much in the same category and someone the entire squad has immense respect for as a person and a player.

“This is not a reflection of succession planning, but rather a decision to return to the traditional leadership set-up that has served Australian cricket so well for generations.”

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It will be a few months before Australia name a Test squad but Cummins will be firmly in the frame again, having shared the role with Travis Head since the home series against Sri Lanka in early 2019. However, speaking about the potential of one day landing the top job in Test cricket Cummins acknowledged the challenge it would bring for a fast bowler.

“I feel like in every Test I play, I bowl my overs and I’m absolutely cooked and I go down to fine leg and try to recover,” he told SEN Radio last year. “I’m not thinking about field placements or who should be bowling or anything like that. I’m not sure I’d make a great captain at the moment.”