George Bailey Confirms He Will Step Aside From Deciding Tim Paine's Fate Due To Conflict Of Interest

Australia’s chief selector George Bailey has confirmed on Tuesday that he will not take part in the voting process that will decide whether Tim Paine should continue being part of the Australian Test team.

Bailey and Paine are close friends and also share a business relationship which will act as a conflict of interest in deciding Paine’s fate in the national side. In order to avoid it altogether, Bailey recused himself from voting.

“If the panel was not in agreeance with Tim’s position going forward and it was going to come down to a vote, then I would step aside and leave that to Tony and Justin to work through. They’re both aware of that,” Bailey said on the Cricket Etc podcast.

Paine had to step down from captaincy following a ‘sexting’ scandal that resurfaced after an investigation by Cricket Australia (CA). However, he asserted that he aims to continue playing for the side as a wicket-keeper batsman but won’t be acting in a skipper’s capacity.

Paine’s cricketing journey with the Australian side will be decided by a panel that consists of Bailey, head coach Justin Langer, and the recently included Tony Dodemaide.

George Bailey and fellow selectors continue to monitor Tim Paine’s on-field performance

Tim Paine underwent an invasive surgery after complaining of pain in his neck and left arm due to a bulging disc. Since going under the knife in September, the 36-year-old hasn’t played much and returned to Tasmania’s second XI in Hobart on Monday. This game will properly assess his fitness – something that Bailey and co. are keeping an eye on.

Australia does have a couple of backup wicket-keeping options in Alex Carey and Josh Inglis.

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