Aaron Finch opines on reported rift between Australian players and head coach Justin Langer
Australian cricket has been in a state of turmoil lately for multiple reasons. While the national team has been suffering one humiliating loss after another, a huge rift between players and head coach Justin Langer was reported. As per reports, Langer’s “over-passionate” behavior has caused unrest in the dressing room. There also have been stories of heated confrontations between players and staff members.
With campaigns like T20 World Cup and Ashes being in the pipeline, former Australian wicketkeeper-batsman wants the Justin Langer issue to be solved sooner than later. However, when Australia’s limited-overs captain Aaron Finch was asked about the reported fall-out, he remained tight-lipped. He, instead, suggested that being in the bio-bubble could be the reason tensions get frayed.
All I’ll say is when you lose, everything is magnified: Aaron Finch
“It’s a good question, and I don’t know the answer to that. All I’ll say is when you lose, everything is magnified and everything is highlighted,” Finch said on Big Sports Breakfast when asked about the continuous leaking of internal issues.
“As I mentioned with the players on tour with bubble fatigue and guys not having any escape while you’re on tour, you’re locked into cricket mode almost 24/7 because you can’t get out and go for a coffee down the road or you can’t go out for dinner somewhere else,” he added.
Highlighting Australia haven’t been at their best this year, Finch asserted that poor run of form gives rise to these stories. “You’re literally just confined to the hotel 24/7. When you’re just around cricket the whole time, that can consume you so you get a little bit of burnout from that as well. And when you’re losing that just adds multiple layers to it as well,” said the 34-year-old.
Meanwhile, Langer has indeed done a fine job as Australia’s head coach. Under him, the Men in Yellow reached the semi-final of the 2019 World Cup alongside retaining the Ashes in England. However, his contract is set to expire in the middle of 2022 and it would be interesting to see if his contract gets renewed or not. Hence, the former Australian opener certainly has a point to prove in the upcoming assignments.
