Finch tipped to retake Aussie T20 captaincy

Renegades skipper Aaron Finch has been backed by Ricky Ponting as a logical fit to return to the national T20 captaincy role next month.

Finch held the post between 2014 and 2016 for a six-match tenure that ended shortly before last year's ICC World T20 event, when selectors gave Test and ODI captain Steve Smith the reins.

Smith has held the position since, however with the Test squad set to be in India when Australia hosts Sri Lanka for a three-match T20 series beginning February 17 in Melbourne, the Victorian could again be handed the job.

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Whether or not Friday night's devastating display at the Gabba was Finch's last of this summer's KFC Big Bash, it was a timely reminder of his hitting power ahead of the Sri Lanka series.

The 30-year-old was in phenomenal touch in the Renegades' do-or-die clash against the Heat, making the art of finding the boundary appearing phenomenally easy during his 35-ball 71, which included six fours and four sixes.

Until Brendon McCullum's 18-ball half-century in the second innings of the match, it was also the fastest fifty of the tournament – coming from just 20 balls.

Ponting, who will take on the assistant coach role for Australia for the first time alongside Jason Gillespie and under Justin Langer in the series, was quick to stress his position doesn't include selections, however he felt Finch made sense as a strong candidate.

"He's been captain in the past, he's in terrific form and you'd think he's going to be in the team," the 168-Test veteran told bigbash.com.au.

"I'm not sure what other names the selectors are tossing around, but to me it seems like a pretty good fit."

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Finch didn't play in Australia's most recent T20 series, against Sri Lanka last September, due to a broken finger suffered in the preceding ODIs, and has since lost his place in the one-day side.

But the man who was once ranked the world's top international T20 batsman, and who still holds the highest score in T20Is – a remarkable 156 from 63 balls against England in 2013, which included 14 sixes – has led the Renegades to the brink of the finals with aplomb and has hit form with the bat at the right end of the tournament. 

"I honestly haven't thought about it to be honest … if selection goes my way, great," Finch told bigbash.com.au after his side's tense one-run win.

"(The T20 captaincy) can be tough – there's usually one game tacked onto the end of a series, or sometimes you play two or three and then you don't play another few for 12 months or so.

"So it is hard to get a rhythm in T20 internationals, especially for guys who are coming in for their first hit-out of international cricket – they play one or two games, then it's almost 12 months again and they're forgotten about.

"It'd be nice if there were more, but I totally understand that there's time constraints with scheduling."

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With Usman Khawaja currently occupying the opener's spot that was his until a month ago, Finch said his axing – and the lack of runs that led to it – continues to play on his mind.

"I think you look back at the opportunities you had and think what could you have done different," he said.

"I probably tried to go too hard at the top of the order. I probably tried to play almost a T20 style of game in one-day cricket and got knocked over a couple of times.

"I couldn't fault the selectors for dropping me to be honest.

"You never let go of (bring dropped) – it motivates you to keep training hard and working hard on your game – but it was on the cards."