"You’ll be looking for 15 years, we won't have a captain" - Michael Clarke slams Cricket Australia

Michael Clarke was critical of Cricket Australia (CA) over the Tim Paine saga. Clarke declared that Australia won’t be left with options to captain the side if it looks for someone with a perfect record.

Tim Paine announced his decision to step down from the captaincy after some sexually explicit messages that he sent to a female colleague in 2017 surfaced. Former players and administrators have taken sides in criticizing CA's role in covering up the incident back then and renouncing Paine once it became public.

Clarke strongly felt that CA had let their captain out in the dry. He added that the side may end up having a futile search of 15 years if they are looking for a captain with a perfect record in their personal life.

“Where is the backing of the player as well? You’ll be looking for 15 years (if you want a captain who hasn’t done anything wrong), we won’t have a captain,” Clarke told Big Sports Breakfast.

Michael Clarke cited the example of Ricky Ponting, who overcame a troublesome start to his career to become a legendary batter and captain of immense success.

“Go back in my time even to Ricky Ponting. If that’s the case, he never would have captained Australia. He had a punch up in the middle of a Bourbon & Beefsteak. Are you not going to give him the job because of that? He’s a great example. He’s shown you how time, experience, maturity, playing at the highest level and even the captaincy turned him around,” Clarke added.

Michael Clarke has led Australia in 47 Tests, 74 ODIs and 18 T20Is. He also led the side to their fifth world title in the ICC Men’s World Cup 2015 held in Australia and New Zealand.

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Tim Paine becomes second consecutive Australian captain to step down after a controversy

Steve Smith was handed a ban after the sandpaper saga unraveled in Capetown.

With the resignation, Tim Paine became the second successive Australian captain to end his stint in controversy. His predecessor, Steve Smith, was sacked by CA after the sandpaper saga that unraveled during the third Test against South Africa in Capetown in 2018.

Smith was handed a ban for 12 months from the game and a further 12 months from “leadership roles”. David Warner, who was the side’s vice-captain at the time, was also found guilty and handed a lifetime recusal from all kinds of “leadership roles”.

Australia are currently in the search for a new captain before the Ashes, which is scheduled to start on December 8. All-rounder Pat Cummins and Steve Smith, who has completed his two-year ban from captaincy, are considered frontrunners in the race.