<p>Fast bowler Pat Cummins was named the 47th captain of the Australia Test team on Friday in place of Tim Paine, who stood down from the position last week.</p>.<p>Paine resigned after revelations he had been investigated and cleared over sexually explicit text messages sent to a female former colleague four years ago.</p>.<p>Cummins, 28, becomes only the second specialist fast bowler to take the captaincy after Ray Lindwall, who led for one test against India in the mid-1950s.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/sports/cricket/tim-paine-distressed-and-embarrassed-by-scandal-1052993.html" target="_blank">Tim Paine distressed and embarrassed by scandal</a></strong></p>.<p>"I am honoured to accept this role ahead of what will be a massive Ashes summer," said Cummins in a statement. "I hope I can provide the same leadership Tim (Paine) has given the group in the past few years.</p>.<p>"With Steve (Smith) and I as captains, a number of very senior players in this squad, and some great young talent coming through, we are a strong and tightly knit group."</p>.<p>As vice-captain, Cummins was the obvious choice to replace Paine and his appointment enables a rapid transition with the start of the Ashes series against England less than two weeks away.</p>.<p>Smith replaces Cummins as vice-captain, returning to a formal leadership role after serving a 12-month ban and a two-year leadership suspension in the wake of the Newlands ball-tampering scandal in 2018.</p>.<p>Popular, telegenic and amiable in public, Cummins has taken over as Australia's leading paceman in recent seasons and tops the ICC's test bowling rankings.</p>.<p>Even before Paine's embarrassing resignation a procession of former players and pundits had endorsed Cummins as Australia's captain-in-waiting, despite former skipper Smith's hopes of returning to the role.</p>.<p>"I just think Pat Cummins has developed into a more integral part of that team and grown in his knowledge of the game and experiences he’s had," former Australia wicketkeeper and captain Adam Gilchrist told Reuters last week.</p>.<p>Cummins will have plenty of support to lean on in the team, though Paine has taken an indefinite mental health break.</p>.<p>While he takes on the captaincy sooner than planned, he has served something of an apprenticeship as New South Wales skipper in the domestic one-day competition.</p>.<p><strong>Watch the latest DH Videos here:</strong></p>
<p>Fast bowler Pat Cummins was named the 47th captain of the Australia Test team on Friday in place of Tim Paine, who stood down from the position last week.</p>.<p>Paine resigned after revelations he had been investigated and cleared over sexually explicit text messages sent to a female former colleague four years ago.</p>.<p>Cummins, 28, becomes only the second specialist fast bowler to take the captaincy after Ray Lindwall, who led for one test against India in the mid-1950s.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/sports/cricket/tim-paine-distressed-and-embarrassed-by-scandal-1052993.html" target="_blank">Tim Paine distressed and embarrassed by scandal</a></strong></p>.<p>"I am honoured to accept this role ahead of what will be a massive Ashes summer," said Cummins in a statement. "I hope I can provide the same leadership Tim (Paine) has given the group in the past few years.</p>.<p>"With Steve (Smith) and I as captains, a number of very senior players in this squad, and some great young talent coming through, we are a strong and tightly knit group."</p>.<p>As vice-captain, Cummins was the obvious choice to replace Paine and his appointment enables a rapid transition with the start of the Ashes series against England less than two weeks away.</p>.<p>Smith replaces Cummins as vice-captain, returning to a formal leadership role after serving a 12-month ban and a two-year leadership suspension in the wake of the Newlands ball-tampering scandal in 2018.</p>.<p>Popular, telegenic and amiable in public, Cummins has taken over as Australia's leading paceman in recent seasons and tops the ICC's test bowling rankings.</p>.<p>Even before Paine's embarrassing resignation a procession of former players and pundits had endorsed Cummins as Australia's captain-in-waiting, despite former skipper Smith's hopes of returning to the role.</p>.<p>"I just think Pat Cummins has developed into a more integral part of that team and grown in his knowledge of the game and experiences he’s had," former Australia wicketkeeper and captain Adam Gilchrist told Reuters last week.</p>.<p>Cummins will have plenty of support to lean on in the team, though Paine has taken an indefinite mental health break.</p>.<p>While he takes on the captaincy sooner than planned, he has served something of an apprenticeship as New South Wales skipper in the domestic one-day competition.</p>.<p><strong>Watch the latest DH Videos here:</strong></p>