MELBOURNE: Former Australia Twenty20 captain George Bailey was appointed on Wednesday as one of the country’s three national selectors, replacing the retired Greg Chappell.

Baily — who will initially serve as a ‘National Teams advisor’ for Cricket Australia — joins chairman Trevor Hohns and head coach Justin Langer and draws the curtain on his long playing career after the domestic Big Bash League in early February to take on the role full-time.

“I have been fortunate enough to contribute as a player for quite a few years, and to now have the opportunity to continue in the role of selector is a tremendous honour,” said Bailey.

“I am passionate about the long-term success of the Australian cricket team and advancing the cause of Australian cricket in general. I’m confident I can add value to the selection process and that my experience will be complementary to that of Trevor and Justin.”

Bailey, 37, played five Tests, 90 One-dayIinternationals and 30 Twenty20 Internationals for Australia.

He has also been a stalwart for Tasmania, the Hobart Hurricanes and Melbourne Stars since making his first-class debut in 2004. He is currently 12 runs short of 10,000 first-class runs.

“He is an outstanding leader and one of the most respected, thoughtful and generous figures in international cricket,” said Cricket Australia’s head of national teams Ben Oliver said.

“His extensive experience across all formats, and deep knowledge of T20 cricket, will be invaluable as we head into a home T20 World Cup [next year] and beyond.”

Bailey replaces former Australian skipper Chappell, who had been Cricket Australia’s national talent manager for the past nine years as well as a selector before calling it quits in September.

Published in Dawn, November 28th, 2019