Justin Langer has rubbished talk of a rift between himself and the Australia team as he likened the players to "younger brothers".
Langer stepped down in February after overseeing Australia's first T20 World Cup triumph and an Ashes hammering of England on home soil.
The former opener has been back in the spotlight following his comments on the Back Chat podcast, accusing sources who leaked stories to the media during his reign of being "cowards" with agendas.
Langer also bemoaned a lack of honest feedback given by players while he was in charge of the team.
Cricket Australia chief executive Nick Hockley responded by expressing his disappointment with Langer for "unfairly criticising" the players.
The ex-Australia batter had his say once again in a West Australian column, stating he has not fallen out with the players.
"This rubbish dialogue of me fighting with the current team must stop. Simply because it is not true," Langer wrote.
"They are my friends. They are like my younger brothers. Anything said to the contrary is false.
"For four years we drank, ate, celebrated, strategised and lived together. We fought back from 'sandpaper gate' and Covid together and we won the T20 World Cup and Ashes together."
Langer made it clear he has no issue with captain Pat Cummins.
"For the record, I am a great admirer of Pat Cummins. Not only is he an outstanding cricketer but he is also a very good human being," he said.
"Would I have liked him to have backed me more publicly towards the end of my time as coach? Of course, I would. Who wouldn't?"
He added: "Was it always perfect? No, it wasn't? What business, what team is always perfect?
"I have never met a leader who is every single person's cup of tea. Again, that's life.
"And I accept my four years with the team had to come to an end. It's just a shame it happened like it did. But now, it's time to move on."
England selector Wright backs Bairstow to bounce back
Jonny Bairstow must recapture his pre-injury form if he is to regain his place in the England white-ball set-up.
That is according to England's chief selector, Luke Wright, following the decision to leave Bairstow out of the squad to face Australia in a limited-overs series next month.
Bairstow has missed out on England's first white-ball series since the T20 World Cup, with fellow veteran campaigners Chris Jordan and Moeen Ali also left out.
But Wright says the door remains open for Bairstow, if the 34-year-old can play his way back into the form he showed before sustaining a broken leg while golfing in 2022.
"One of Jonny's great strengths is how much he wants to play," said Wright. "He's hugely disappointed.
"We just want him back to being one of the best players in the world. He had that horrific injury, and that’s been the message. Can we get you back to where you were pre-injury?
"He understands that. He doesn’t like it. One thing Jonny will do is fight back, and I hope he does and gets himself back in the team."
Wright is hoping the refreshing of England's squad in the wake of their T20 World Cup disappointment helps spur Jos Buttler's team on, with coach Matthew Mott having also left after that tournament.
"The one thing we don't lack in England is the amount of talent that's around," Wright said.
"More than anything, the character these young players show in taking the game on.
"What a great time to be in English cricket."
England's Test team, meanwhile, have made one alteration to the team that featured in the first match against Sri Lanka, ahead of the second contest of the series, with Olly Stone replacing the injured Mark Wood.
Bairstow and Moeen left out of England's white-ball squad
Jonny Bairstow and Moeen Ali have both been left out of England's white-ball series squad, with five uncapped players named.
As Jos Buttler looks to the future, Warwickshire batting all-rounders, Jacob Bethell and Dan Mousley, have been given their first international call-ups for the three-match T20 series against Australia next month.
Essex batter Jordan Cox, Hampshire seamer John Turner and Leicestershire left-arm bowler Josh Hull, who was named as Mark Wood's replacement in the Test squad to play Sri Lanka, have also been picked.
The latter three will also be involved for the five one-day internationals that follow.
World Cup winners Bairstow and Moeen, who have been regular fixtures in England's white-ball squad for over a decade, could have made their final international appearances after being left out of the squad, with Chris Jordan also being overlooked.
Brydon Carse, however, has been recalled for both squads after serving a betting ban, while Saqib Mahmood returns for the T20 series after recovering from injury. Buttler will also be fit to feature after overcoming a calf injury.
Marcus Trescothick will lead England for the first time against Australia after being named Matthew Mott's interim replacement.
Mott left in July following England's semi-final exit to eventual champions India in the T20 World Cup, having also failed to help England defend their 50-over world title in 2023.
The first match of the T20 series will take place on September 11 at The Ageas Bowl in Southampton.
England T20 squad to play Australia:
Jos Buttler (captain), Jofra Archer, Jacob Bethell, Brydon Carse, Jordan Cox, Sam Curran, Josh Hull, Will Jacks, Liam Livingstone, Saqib Mahmood, Dan Mousley, Adil Rashid, Phil Salt, Reece Topley, John Turner.
England ODI squad: Jos Buttler, Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Ben Duckett, Josh Hull, Will Jacks, Matthew Potts, Adil Rashid, Phil Salt, Jamie Smith, Reece Topley, John Turner.
West Indies captain Powell hits out at 'unacceptable' rustiness
Rovman Powell insists West Indies must not get too far ahead of themselves after what he saw as an "unacceptable" level of rustiness against South Africa.
The Windies won by seven wickets in Friday's T20I to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
They have now won five of their last six T20Is against the Proteas, having bounced back from a three-wicket defeat at the T20 World Cup in June.
However, Powell was far from happy with what he saw, with South Africa posting a competitive 174-7 - Tristan Stubbs top-scoring with 76 and Patrick Kruger adding 44.
Powell said: "I think it's always good to go 1-0 up. We bowled well in the powerplay and though we let them off a bit, we were good with the bat.
"The guys look a bit rusty, which is unacceptable at this level.
"To be honest, a lot of talk is around the next T20 World Cup but we have to play one game at a time and see different players. We have to stay in the moment and the 2026 T20 World Cup is too far for us."
Shai Hope's 51 and Alick Athanaze's 40 got the Windies' chase off to a strong start, paving the way for Nicholas Pooran to take centre stage with an unbeaten 65, which included reeling off four straight sixes in one over.
"I just felt like Shai and Alick put South Africa under pressure in the powerplay," said Pooran, who was named Player of the Match.
"At the ten-over mark, we knew it was a better wicket and my job was simple and I just had to take on my match-ups.
"With rain around, the first ten overs were tricky when South Africa batted. Stubbs and Kruger played well, but we knew the wicket would get better."
Along with Stubbs' performance with the bat, one other bright spark for South Africa in their defeat was teenager Kwena Maphaka, who claimed his maiden international wicket.
"Maphaka has a lot of X-factor and is really young," said Proteas captain Aiden Markram. "He has hunger when you speak to him off the field and he wants to win games for South Africa."
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