Cricket Australia (CA) on Wednesday (January 27) defended under-fire Test skipper Tim Paine as the latter has come under the scanner following back-to-back home series losses to India.

Paine might have done well with the bat but he had a below-par series against India as a captain and wicketkeeper. The 36-year-old dropped quite a few catches in the last two Tests and faced a lot of flak over his bowling changes and field placings.

But National Selector Trevor Hohns insisted Paine was still the right man to do the job. In fact, he retained the Test captaincy for the upcoming tour of South Africa.

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"Tim Paine was excellent at No 7 against India and as a batsman, wicketkeeper and captain still has much to offer in the Test arena," national selector Trevor Horns said in a statement.

Paine was handed over the leadership duties in the wake of the ball-tampering scandal in Cape Town in 2018, when then skipper Steve Smith and his deputy David Warner were suspended for a year for their involvement in the infamous incident.

"Tim Paine has been an outstanding captain since taking over the Australian men's Test team in incredibly difficult circumstances," said Ben Oliver, CA's Executive General Manager (National Teams).

"Some of the commentary surrounding Tim and his position as Test captain has been wide of the mark."

Oliver further said scrutiny on Paine's performance was expected lines given the high-profile nature of the series against India.

"Tim is in career-best form with the bat and, while the series against India was not his best with the gloves by his own admission, he remains in the top echelon of wicketkeepers globally.

"And as a leader, he has been brilliant. To captain a squad through the many challenges presented by the pandemic - not least the unique pressures of hub life - is no easy task and Tim did that with strength, humility and good humour."

(With PTI inputs)