Tim Paine became the first Australian skipper to lose two back-to-back Test series against India at home when a bruised and battered Team India beat them 2-1 earlier this month in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
A lot of cricket fans and experts have criticized Paine's captaincy while he also faced the wrath of Australian fans for his below-par glovework.
Michael Clarke is also of the opinion that Paine wasn't at his best when it came to tactics and thus he must be questioned. He wants the captaincy aspect of Tim Paine to be spoken about.
‘Still has much to offer in the Test arena’, Cricket Australia defends under-fire Tim Paine
Clarke said on Sky Sports' Big Sports Breakfast, "Don’t say nothing’s wrong there. Tactically he missed a few tricks and his keeping was nowhere near as good as what I’ve seen from Painey. Obviously you have to make the team first but then the captaincy, it would have been spoken about."
"My question is - so many past players, so many people - the fans of the game - have questioned Painey’s tactics throughout the series. So, you haven’t questioned his captaincy and you haven’t added anyone, whether it is a player or support staff member to the squad to help him with his tactics," he added.
Clarke also has the same concerns when the Australian team travels to South Africa with the same tactics. He also questioned national selector Trevor Hohns whether he thinks that the tactics used by Paine against India would produce a different result in South Africa.
The 39-year-old said, "How does he get better? How does he go to South Africa to improve? It seems like that is an area that he needs help, whether it is extra leadership on the field or extra people around him to help him get better. If you keep doing the same thing you will keep getting the same results."
"Is Trevor Hohns saying they thought the tactics were fine and we’ll be right and do the same thing in South Africa but get a different result? If that is the case, I said they missed a few tricks throughout the summer," he added.
While the former skipper is not happy with Paine's captaincy in the recently-concluded series against India, he doesn't want a replacement to lead Australia. Clarke is of the opinion that Paine must be helped to get better.
"There’s nothing wrong with sticking with Painey. I like him, that’s great, stick with your captain if you think he is the right man for the job. Still help him get better. This is my point about Painey. I’m not saying it is time to go.
Stick with the captain, I love that. But give him some help. Allow him to get better in the areas he needs to get better."
"What changes are we making for South Africa to help Painey call it tactically? What are we doing different? We go to South Africa and win and everything is different? That is not how you win the Ashes," Clarke concluded.
(With inputs from Sky Sports)
