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Former Australia skipper Tim Paine’s international career was cut short following an off-field scandal. He stepped down as the skipper of Australian red-ball team just a couple of weeks prior to the Ashes 2021 but his on-field ability and keeping techniques will always be remembered. Paine was appointed as the skipper of the team when Australia desperately needed a leader. Following the Sandpapergate incident, the Kangaroos were in a dire situation and that’s when Paine stepped up and led gracefully.

When it comes to his batting, the stumper-batter was always in the shadows of the big names. However, he played multiple crucial roles, which rescued Australia time and again. Here are three best knocks of him in international cricket:

3. 73* against India: 

In the opening Test of the 2020-21 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Paine played a very important knock against India in Adelaide. When all the other batters were struggling to get going, the 38-year-old hit 73* runs to keep Australia in the hunt. In the second innings, the home team bundled India for just 36 runs as Australia won the match by eight wickets. However, it was Paine’s knock in the first innings which gave them a lot of confidence to bounce back.

2. 79 against New Zealand: 

Paine’s innings played a significant part in Australia’s victory in the second Test against New Zealand in Melbourne. Australia needed something special towards the end of the first innings and that’s what Paine provided as he hit 79 runs, which is also his second-highest score in Test cricket.

1. 61* against Pakistan:

Paine’s unbeaten half-century played a vital role in Australia securing a draw in the first Test match of the series against Pakistan. The Sarfaraz Ahmed-led side was on top of Australia and were on the verge of securing a win. However, Paine’s 61* rescued Australia from a defeat in Dubai.