AARON Finch has been confirmed as Australia’s ODI captain, replacing Tim Paine whose international one-day career may be at an end.

Paine was left out of Australia’s one-day squad which was announced on Saturday. His only ODI series as captain came against England in June, when he made just 36 runs in five matches, averaging 7.20.

Finch will be deputised by Redbacks wicketkeeper-batsman Alex Carey and fast bowler Josh Hazlewood, after the trio impressed a panel with “strong presentations” on their leadership credentials.

Shaun Marsh has retained his spot despite a horror Test series in the UAE, while his brother Mitch has been “managed” along with Nathan Lyon.

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Paine’s only ODI series as captain came against England in June, when he made just 36 runs in five matches, averaging 7.20. Source: AFP

S.Marsh’s series in England proved to be his saving grace, after he top-scored for Australia with 288 runs at 57.60, including two centuries. He heads into the series after averaging 3.50 in the UAE, before making 80 off 140 for Western Australia at the WACA where the first ODI takes place on November 4.

Meanwhile, Chris Lynn is one-step closer to his World Cup dream after being recalled for his first ODI series since January 2017.

Lynn returned to 50-over cricket for Queensland this season after nearly a five-year hiatus from the team. It was a signal of his intent to crack into the Australian team - which he has one ODI cap for - before the 2019 World Cup.

He backed it up by top scoring in the domestic One-Day Cup with 452 runs at 75.33.

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Shaun Marsh has retained his spot despite a horror Test series in the UAE. Source: AFP

After naming the 14-player squad, national selector Trevor Hohns said: “At the top of the order Aaron Finch, Travis Head and Shaun Marsh all retained their spots after making runs in England, but we have also added further depth to our batting stocks.

“Chris (Lynn) made it clear he wanted to be considered for the World Cup, and he backed it up with his performances for Queensland in the JLT Cup. He was the highest run scorer of the tournament and has been rewarded for his consistency.”

Speaking of the decision to omit Paine, he added: “Alex Carey will pull on the gloves full-time to allow Tim Paine to focus purely on captaining the Test team, which includes preparing for next year’s Ashes.

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“Alex provides us with another strong batting option, as he displayed in last year’s Big Bash, and he’s a wonderful young leader to have around the group and out in the field.

“D’Arcy Short has retained his spot in the side alongside Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis. D’Arcy was also outstanding with the bat in the JLT Cup, combined with his energy in the field and ability to come on and bowl leg-spin, he’s an extremely versatile member of the squad.”

Australia’s other spin options in place of Lyon will be Adam Zampa and Ashton Agar.

Zampa’s last ODI for Australia came in January before he was left out of the England tour. He returns to the squad as the highest spinning wicket-taker in this season’s One-Day Cup, taking 12 at 25.41.

All five quicks who did feature in England have been left out - Billy Stanlake, Andrew Tye, Michael Neser, Kane and Jhye Richardson.

Adam Zampa returns to the squad as the highest spinning wicket-taker in this season’s One-Day Cup, taking 12 at 25.41. Source: AFP

“As is the case with squad announcements, there is a focus on who has missed out, and I think it’s important to outline the reasons behind some of the omissions. Andrew Tye is unlucky to miss out,” Hohns said.

“The return of Cummins, Hazlewood and Starc unfortunately meant there wasn’t enough room in the squad for another quick.”

“And we have made the decision to manage Mitch Marsh and Nathan Lyon carefully to ensure they are in the best condition possible to put their hand up for selection either later in the summer or for the World Cup next year.

“No doubt with a big summer program ahead opportunities may well present themselves for Andrew, Mitch and Nathan, as well as others not included in this squad.”

Meanwhile, Finch said he was “very humbled” by being named ODI captain.

“It’s very exciting. I’m very humbled, very honoured to lead the side and lead Australia,” Finch said,” he said.

Finch added: “I think it’s really important to have the voice of the bowlers there as well ... A lot of the time batters are in leadership roles and bowlers are neglected in terms of that and it’s almost an us versus them at times.

“It’s very exciting for Josh and I can’t wait to work with him.”

Australia squad: Aaron Finch (c), Alex Carey (vc), Josh Hazlewood (vc), Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Travis Head, Chris Lynn, Shaun Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Darcy Short, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa

South Africa squad: Faf du Plessis (c), Farhaan Behardien, Quinton de Kock, Reeza Hendricks, Imran Tahir, Heinrich Klaasen, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Chris Morris, Lungi Ngidi, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Dale Steyn

Schedule:

First ODI: Perth Stadium, November 4

Second ODI: Adelaide Oval, November 9

Third ODI: Bellerive Oval, Hobart, November 11