Doubted to feared: The makings of Aaron Finch

It should come as no surprise Aaron Finch has chosen to make the tough call on his ODI playing tenure, given the skipper has long been obsessively self-critical and perhaps even more self-aware.

Finch today called time on a near decade-long career in 50-over internationals, during which he became one of only 20 Australia men's players to date to surpass 150 appearances and joined an even more exclusive cohort (seven) to lead the nation more than 50 times in the original limited-overs format.

The 35-year-old also takes the field at Cairns tomorrow for the final time with opening partner David Warner – Australia's third-most productive first-wicket pairing in more than 50 years of ODI cricket – and with only Warner and Mark Waugh (18) and Ricky Ponting (29) boasting more hundreds than Finch's 17.

But it's his recent return of 26 runs from his seven most-recent ODI innings (with a highest score of 15) that has fleetingly overshadowed that remarkable record, and led Finch to read the writing on the wall.

Or in the notebook that has been a constant travelling companion throughout his international playing days, even if his scrawled shorthand can sometimes prove difficult for even its author to decipher.

Shortly before Finch led Australia on their 2019 ODI World Cup defence in the UK, he told cricket.com.au about the rudimentary reminders he jotted down and their value in helping him through run droughts and rough patches.

"It's not an extensive diary or journal, it's just notes that are basically some thoughts about what my mental state was, or how I was feeling going into a particular innings," he said at the time, not long after having endured a string of 12 ODI innings in which he passed 50 just once.

"It's good to be able to go back and reflect, and to have a little checklist for yourself and say, if you're playing in England, 'right, when I was playing well and got a couple of hundreds in a row here, what was I doing?'.

"I also read through it on the night before matches, so then I can go to bed with a really clear mind."

The clarity of thinking that led Finch to announce his retirement from ODIs – he will continue to lead Australia into the upcoming T20 World Cup at home, form and fitness willing – would not have come solely from his scratchy, self-reflective notes.

He would also have sought counsel from trusted confidantes, most crucially current Australia men's team coach Andrew McDonald who Finch described in 2019 as "my number one go-to for everything – cricket, leadership, captaincy, relationship advice … everything really."

McDonald has been a constant in Finch's cricket journey from the time the hard-hitting right-hander made his first-class and list-A debuts for Victoria in 2007, and in the interstate T20 competition that preceded the BBL two years later.

He was also the wise head to whom Finch turned upon losing his hard-won place in Australia's Test team in 2018, and would have been a regular and reliable sounding board as the scrutiny and pressure grew with each batting failure of the past fortnight.

The next ICC World Cup is just over a year away in India, but the cricket calendar was not the only consideration that potentially weighed heavy as Finch contemplated his playing future.

As he revealed in his 2019 interview, his discussions with wife Amy about a post-playing career have focused on him finding a passion beyond the sport that's been his life since he began playing cricket at Colac Primary School in Victoria's western districts.

But Finch admitted that was easier said than done.

"It scares the crap out of me, thinking about what I'm going to do when I finish playing – it really does," he said.

"I guess you're never ready for it, but it can happen any day, unfortunately, in the cut-throat business of professional sport."

From the time he stood up at primary school assembly in year four and announced to his fellow students and bemused staff he would one day play cricket for his country, Finch has made a habit of proving his doubters wrong.

The unfashionably but brutally effective technique that could at times appear as rustic as his upbringing was regularly deemed unsuited to tackling the new ball when wielded by the best opening bowlers in world cricket.

Yet Finch not only prospered, he came to be viewed as fearsome rather than fodder for many a fast-bowling rival.

Upon making his ODI debut on his home patch at the MCG in January 2013 (against Sri Lanka), the then 26-year-old was immediately overshadowed by his fellow debutant and opening partner Phillip Hughes who clubbed a sublime 112 off 129 balls.

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But while Finch might have taken a while to find his feet and his range at international 50-over level, when he did, he arrived with a rush.

Reinstated to the top of the order for a one-off ODI against Scotland after Australia's unsuccessful 2013 Champions Trophy tournament in the UK, Finch blasted 148 from 116 deliveries in a then-record opening stand of 246 with Shaun Marsh (who made 151).

Centuries against England, Zimbabwe and South Africa over the ensuing year or more cemented his berth, but perhaps his most significant ODI knock was the 135 (off 128 balls) he scored against England in Australia's opening game of the 2015 World Cup at the MCG.

It was an innings that set the tone and the foundation for a memorable tournament triumph on home turf.

The faith held by selectors, teammates and his many supporters in Finch's ability to bludgeon his way out of form slumps has been based on his proven capacity to do just that, such as 2017-18 when his run drought ended with three centuries and a 94 from five innings against India and England.

And again, in the lead-up to the 2019 World Cup when his series of nine scores below 30 from a dozen hits was ended by consecutive hundreds against Pakistan in the UAE.

However, the latest dry spell – coupled with the heightened debate about his place in the team and the scheduling of T20 and ODI World Cups a year apart – has forced Finch's hand.

And he will be hoping to bow out in a typically incandescent blaze tomorrow, having already secured the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy against previously top-ranked ODI outfit New Zealand.

While he believes – and his recent record of two half-centuries from his past four innings would strongly suggest – he still has much to offer Australia in their upcoming T20 World Cup defence, Finch also holds a predictably pragmatic view of the line that separates batting success from failure.

"Scoring has never been my issue; my issue has been staying in long enough," he reflected during a previous form slump.

"If you stay in for long enough, you're going to score runs.

"They (opposition) are entitled to bowl good balls, you just have to keep the good balls out and do that any way you can – it doesn't matter how ugly it looks."

In the end, it seems Finch couldn't see a means – aesthetically or otherwise – in ODI cricket by which he could stay in.

So, in characteristically putting the interest of team success ahead of personal vanity, he's read the notes and given himself out.

Men's Dettol ODI Series v New Zealand

Tuesday, Sep 6: Australia won by two wickets

Thursday, Sep 8: Australia won by 113 runs

Sunday Sep 11: Cazaly Stadium, Cairns, 2:20pm

Australia squad: Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Aaron Finch (c), Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, David Warner, Adam Zampa

New Zealand squad: Finn Allen, Trent Boult, Michael Bracewell, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Martin Guptill, Matt Henry, Tom Latham (wk), Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Ben Sears, Tim Southee, Kane Williamson (c)

Buy #AUSvNZ tickets here