- Tim Paine trying to avoid Ashes distractions
- Ravichandran Ashwin included in a 13-man squad
There’s a quixotic feel to Tim Paine’s task in 2019, both this week and throughout the year with the away Ashes series but three Tests into the future for his side. On the available evidence, to hold the urn aloft at The Oval in September looks every bit The Impossible Dream, but that doesn’t mean the captain is not aware of what he has to start working towards. With valour, Australia’s knight-errant must travel and serve, however fraught the path ahead.
How the selectors have gone about picking the XI for this Sydney Test highlights this difficultly. “Team balance” has been Paine’s key phrase since Australia’s dispiriting defeat at Melbourne, stating that they are picking the team to win this week – simple as that. In keeping with that sentiment, Paine noted that one of the most important things he has learned as national skipper is staying present in each moment and each match. “Trying not to be too distracted by what’s ahead of us or who’s coming back or who’s not,” he continued. “To keep a little bit of reality around our group, to keep our feet where they are and keep trying to improve. That’s been my focus.”
Continue reading...from The Guardian http://bit.ly/2CJJI9e
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