Test captain Tim Paine has jumped to Justin Langer’s defense, confirming the leadership group has undertaken “robust conversations” about their coach as speculation rages about the Aussie legend’s position. Murmurs of Langer’s overbearing management style, causing unrest in the Australian dressing room, have continued to leak out. The West Australian was reportedly involved in a heated public confrontation with a Cricket Australia staffer earlier this month. In contrast, a damning opinion piece from a former staffer suggested a volatile team environment is wearing players down.
Watch India‘s Tour of England Live & On-Demand on Kayo. New to Kayo? Try 14-Days Free Now >
CA chief executive Nick Hockley supported Langer on Wednesday night, and Paine weighed in on the explosive situation on Friday. “There’s no hiding from it – it’s been a tough week. Certainly tougher for Justin Langer than anyone else,” Paine told SEN Hobart. “It‘s been a bit of a shame in the last week that many of the failings have been pinned on JL. That’s certainly not the case. We haven’t lived up to our standards on the field. “We are all on the same page; we are all trying to get better and want to make Australian cricket as great as it always was.
“We want to be the best team in the world, and to do that, we have to have some challenging and robust conversations, and we’ve certainly done that as a senior group in the last 24 to 48 hours, and we’ve come out of it pumped about what’s ahead in the next six months. “If you can imagine someone sitting in a room for 14 days reading this sort of stuff coming out all the time, it would have been bloody difficult. “Myself, Aaron Finch, Pat Cummins, and the leaders of Australian cricket needed to discuss things that needed to be discussed and then got around him and supported him and looked to move forward.”
As the storm around Langer continues to swirl, reports of a $40,000 pay gap causing friction between the former Test batter and his playing group have emerged. A text message confirms Langer’s regret. Langer played a starring role in the Amazon Prime docu-series The Test, which gave viewers a behind-the-scenes glimpse into his first 12 months as an Australian coach. As first revealed by The Australian, each of the Australian cricketers featured in the docu-series received an $80,000 bonus in late 2020.
But a Sydney Morning Herald report on Friday revealed Langer was not as lucky, pre-emptively cutting a deal with Amazon Prime for approximately $40,000, half of what the players received. According to the report, players received the same amount irrespective of their screen time, meaning young Victorian gun Will Pucovski – who appeared in the show for approximately 10 seconds playing a video game – collected the same sum as focal characters Aaron Finch and Steve Smith. The 50-year-old, reportedly frustrated with the outcome, told the Sydney Morning Herald via text: “I look back at that moment in time, and with hindsight, I should have reacted differently.”
‘Leave him alone’: Hayden hits out.
Meanwhile, cricket legend Matthew Hayden launched a stunning attack on players after The Australian reported Hockley and CA Chairman Earl Eddings organized a phone hook-up with senior team members to discuss the playing group’s relationship with the coach. Hayden, on Thursday night, went on the radio to defend his former opening partner before turning a flamethrower on players reported to be disgruntled about Langer’s attitude.
“Much of the content about this is downright disrespectful to a bloke that’s played over 100 Test matches,” Hayden told SEN’s The Sporting Capital. “Even this facetious discussion amongst senior players last night that Pete Lalor (The Australian’s chief cricket reporter) was onto deciding Justin Langer’s future. Umm, hello! What about meeting that you’re No. 3 in Test cricket, No. 3 in ODI rankings, and No. 6 in T20 rankings? “Waste more energy and time thinking about that than discussing a bloke who’s a legend of the game and so passionate about Australian cricket and culture.