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 Josh Hazlewood.

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.

S.Marsh’s series in England arguably 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 one-day dream after being recalled for his first ODI series since January 2017.

After naming the 14-player squad, national selector Trevor Johns 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.

“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 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