Pat Cummins failed his first big test as Australia captain by being coy over the future of Justin Langer, former fast bowler Mitchell Johnson said on Sunday, as Langer’s resignation as national men’s coach continued to roil Australian cricket.
Langer quit on Saturday as Australia coach, rather than accept a six-month contract extension. The reaction has exposed a split between current players, who have been silent on his departure, and several former teammates who have fiercely defended Langer.
“Pat Cummins has been lauded as some type of cricketing saint since his elevation to the top job this summer,” Johnson wrote in a column in The West Australian newspaper.
“Cummins might have delivered with the ball during the Ashes series, but he has failed his first big test as captain pretty miserably.
“He had plenty of public opportunities to endorse an extension for Langer. So when he let it through to the keeper every time, it became pretty obvious he didn’t want it to happen.”
Johnson wrote that if Cummins wanted Langer out, the captain should have been more forthcoming about it.