Australia coach Justin Langer has given a ringing endorsement of his captain, Tim Paine, insisting that the wicketkeeper will remain the leader of the team for the foreseeable future.
Paine was seen by many as a temporary skipper when he became Australia's 46th Test captain in 2018 after the 45th, Steve Smith, was banned for 12 months for his part in the Newlands ball-tampering scandal.
Selected for his demeanour as much as for his batting and wicketkeeping skills, Paine was at the helm when Australia lost a first home series to India, but has since overseen the retention of the Ashes in England and two series triumphs.
With Smith's additional one-year ban from holding a leadership position within the team expiring early in the New Year, however, some in the Australian media have questioned whether the batsman will resume captaincy duties.
Langer on Wednesday gave the idea of a leadership change short shrift ahead of the third Test against New Zealand - a three-match series Australia have already clinched having taken an unassailable 2-0 lead in this ICC World Test Championship encounter.
"Truth is there's been conjecture from outside but there's never been one millisecond of conjecture within our team," Langer told reporters at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
"He's almost our most important player because he's a very good leader, his captaincy's been excellent, he's the best wicketkeeper in the world, he's as fit as anyone in the group.
"If he believed he could bat as well as we think he can, then we'll see results like we did in the last Test match."
Paine, 35, scored his seventh Test half century in the second Test against New Zealand in Melbourne, which Australia won by 247 runs to follow up a similarly emphatic 296-run win in the first match in Perth.
The World Test Championship was initiated in part to remove the concept of dead rubbers from the longest form of the game and Langer said reaching the final in June 2021 was indeed a big motivation for his players.
Forty points from a victory in the third Test would help second-placed Australia close the gap on top-ranked India in the nine-team table.
Langer said he thought there was every chance Paine would lead the team out at Lord's in 18 months' time should they remain in the top two and qualify for the title-decider.
"I hope he plays as long as he possibly can because his leadership's been brilliant," Langer said.
"In his last performance he was pushing on man of the match ... and he's so fit ... I just literally cannot think of one reason why he wouldn't play as long as he wants to, or needs to."
'Flu symptoms' for Williamson and Nicholls
New Zealand's hopes of salvaging something from the series and of getting some more points on the board were hit on Wednesday after captain Kane Williamson and batsman Henry Nicholls were sent back to the team hotel with "flu symptoms", but the team are confident they will be fit to face Australia.
The batsmen turned up at the SCG for an optional training session but team medical staff thought it best to keep them away from the other players so they were given the day off.
"They're fine, they're not really feeling good today," bowling coach Shane Jurgensen told reporters. "They had some flu symptoms and I'm sure they will be back training tomorrow.
"They're pretty tough, so just take a rest today. It's been a big last two tests so it's a good opportunity to have a day off and come back tomorrow."
While Australia have already sewn up the three-match series, victory at the SCG would elevate New Zealand from fifth to third place in the World Test Championship table.
