Australia's white-ball captain Aaron Finch had a forgettable season in IPL 2022. Playing for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), he managed to score only 86 runs in 5 matches. For the past year, Aaron Finch has not been able to score runs consistently, raising questions about his inclusion in the team.
Former Australian star all-rounder Shane Watson expressed his concern regarding Finch’s present batting form, saying that he is failing to live up to his potential and is batting nowhere near his best.
He also added that Finch should not be included in the Australian team for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2022 to be held in Australia if he fails to show some consistency as a batter.
While speaking in The Grade Cricketer Podcast, Watson said, "Unfortunately, right now, the way he's batting and what I've seen during this IPL, he's batting nowhere near his best. Whatever is going on, the things he's working on with his technique and mindset, it's changed a lot from when he's been at his best. I believe that if he's not scoring runs in the lead up to the T20 World Cup, and its along similar lines to what we saw here in the IPL for KKR, you can't pick him. At the moment he's so far out of touch, no matter how good your captaincy skills are, if he continues to bat the way he is, it would be a big liability, especially as an opener.”
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Adding on, Watson said, "It's such an important role to get the team off to a flying start. He's been so incredibly good - I've batted with him when he got 150 against England at the Rose Bowl in Southampton, he is a world-class batsman, an incredible short-form batsman - but just to see where his game is now it's a fair way away from that. I believe it should be the team's picked and then the captain gets picked from there, especially if you are a long way out of touch."
Watson also opined on giving David Warner an opportunity to lead the Australian team after he was banned from a leadership position for life for his involvement in the infamous ball-tampering controversy that took place in Cape Town in the year 2018.
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Watson said, "David Warner is a leader, he has led the Sunrisers Hyderabad to a lot of success. He has had a great understanding of the game. This is my opinion, and I know it's a big opinion within Australian cricket in certain parts, he's served his time. Yes, he made a big mistake and he was involved in a big mistake but he's been severely punished in so many ways. The way they hung him out to dry and everything really came back on him, the financial impact that it had on him as well, and publicly, he's been absolutely smashed across the board."
He also added, "He's done his time. Everyone makes mistakes. Some are more public than others, and some are a little bit worse than others, but you are allowed to forgive. I think it's absurd that he's not allowed to captain a team, whether it's a Big Bash team or whether it is an Australian team if he's the right person at the right time. Think it's absolutely ridiculous. He has served his time, everyone makes mistakes."
(The Grade Cricketer Podcast inputs)
