Lehmann: Warner to remain vice-captain

David Warner’s senior role within the Australia team is not in jeopardy as a result of Sunday’s spat with South Africa wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock.

Warner’s position as vice-captain came into question after he was involved in an ugly confrontation with De Kock in the player’s tunnel, which was caught on camera.

According to reports, Australia coach Darren Lehmann said the talented Warner would remain Steve Smith’s deputy for the remainder of the series against South Africa, adding that he hoped the two captains and coaches would sit together ahead of the second Test in Port Elizabeth.

‘No, he’s the vice-captain of the Australian cricket team,’ Lehmann said when asked whether Warner’s position as Smith’s No 2 was in question.

‘We’re certainly supporting David. We want to play in a way that gets us success and for us, we’ve just got to make sure we don’t cross the line. That’s the key.

‘There are things that cross the line and evoke emotion, and you’ve got to deal with that behind closed doors and get better at that. Everyone has their own opinion. We’ll just wait and see what happens moving forward, how both teams want to play it.

‘For us, we’re here to win the series. It’s going to be a bloody tough series as we’ve seen over the five days here. We’re looking forward to PE from our point of view.’

Cricket Australia (CA) are scheduled to have a board meeting on Friday where Sunday’s events in Durban will most likely be discussed.

CA have, in the past, discarded vice-captains over behavioural issues. Ian Healey was sacked as Mark Taylor’s deputy and replaced with Steve Waugh in 1997 for showing dissent to an umpire’s decision in a Test match against South Africa at Centurion. Shane Warne was also fired in 2000 after a number of off-field incidents.

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