Nov 26, 2021

Samantha RogersPerthNow Australian fast bowler Pat Cummins has officially been appointed as the new captain of the Men’s Test Cricket team. Former captain Steve Smith will act as his deputy in a remarkable comeback from the sandpapergate scandal in South Africa - which saw him stripped of the role in 2018. “I am honoured to accept this role ahead of what will be a massive Ashes summer,” Cummins said in a statement. “I hope I can provide the same leadership Tim (Paine) has given the group in the past few years. “With Steve and I as captains, a number of very senior players in this squad and some great young talent coming through we are a strong and tightly knit group. “This is an unexpected privilege which I am very grateful for and am very much looking forward to.” It follows the resignation of Tim Paine last week, who Cricket Tasmania today revealed would step away from all forms of cricket for “the foreseeable future”, after revelations he sent explicit images and messages to a fellow employee in 2017. Cummins and Smith were the only two candidates interviewed for the position. The 28-year-old will be the first fast bowler to hold the captaincy since Ray Lindwall did it in a one-off Test back in 1956. The announcement comes less than two weeks out from the start of the Ashes series against England, which begins on December 8 at the Gabba.