Background checks will be carried out before selecting new skipper, confirms Cricket Australia

Cricket Australia chairman Richard Freudenstein has said that pacer Pat Cummins is the frontrunner to get the Test captaincy of the team ahead of the Ashes series, set to begin on December 8. Freudenstein also revealed that Steve Smith will be considered for the role. Australia wicketkeeper-batter Tim Paine announced his decision to relinquish captaincy after a sexting scandal came to light.

CA accepted the 36-year-old’s resignation and have now begun a formal process of naming the next candidate. With only three weeks left for the Ashes series, the CA are not willing to take any risks whatsoever. If Cummins is given the captaincy, then he will become the first fast bowler in 65 years to lead the side. CA chairman Freudenstein has confirmed that there will be a thorough process before appointing the next captain, adding that background checks will be done so that such issues don't arise.

“There are a range of candidates who are available for that role,” Freudenstein said. “Steve Smith is one of the candidates that is available for the role.

“We’ve put in place a process for finding the next Australian captain that was going to take place over the summer in anticipation Tim would one day retire. We’re obviously accelerating that process. It’ll be a very thorough but brief process that will look at all the relevant criteria for a captain of the Australian cricket team. We will come to a conclusion that with plenty of time before the Ashes.”

“You can be sure that part of that process we will be trying to make sure that those issues don’t exist,” Freudenstein said.