Sutherland says 'never doubted' decision to sack Arthur, bring in Lehmann as Oz coach

Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland has said that he never doubted that he and team performance boss Pat Howard had made the right move in sacking Mickey Arthur and bringing in Darren Lehmann, as the national coach.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, the Cricket Australia chief executive has worn a grim expression for much of a difficult year, never taking his eye off the bigger picture even when he was criticised over the Test team's slide to the middle of the rankings.

Meanwhile, an emotional Arthur said that he was happy for Lehmann and the team but found constant references to his sacking as a pivotal moment in the revival hard to swallow.

The extent of Australia's dominance in the first three Tests has exceeded the chief executive's expectations, the report said.

He said that Australia has had a good show at home, but to be up 3-0 with a couple of Tests to play was probably beyond expectations.