Cummins' appointment as the country's 47th men's Test captain on Friday ushered in a new era of leadership in Australian cricket.

But it also left questions over future leaders, particularly after Cummins revealed he did not see himself remaining captain for the rest of his career.

As things stand, Aaron Finch wants to stay on in Australia's white-ball teams until at least the one-day World Cup in India in 2023.

He has also earned the right to fight on as leader after guiding the team to a maiden Twenty20 World Cup win in the UAE earlier this month.

But at age 35, there is no doubt Finch will retire from cricket before Cummins.

Australia have traditionally adopted a same-captain approach in Test and one-day formats, provided the Test captain also features in the one-day team.

But Cummins has no desire to eventually walk into the one-day role.

"It's probably too early to say mainly because I start this role and see where we go," Cummins said.

"My gut feeling and preference at the moment is to have separate captains.

"I think it's too much to ask certainly of me. I'd love to just concentrate on Test cricket."

"Aaron's doing a fantastic job.

"After him having someone who can take the white-ball squad teams to make it their own, take it in their own direction (is best).

"At the moment I'm purely focused on Tests, that will stay the same for the foreseeable (future)."

Cummins' view comes amid a long-held debate about whether Australia should run separate white-ball or Twenty20 coaching staff, rather than one person overseeing all formats.

The paceman's stance is also in line with the fact he does not want to be rested from Test cricket, particularly now that he is captain.

While he has not missed a Test since October 2018, Cummins has played in only 49 of Australia's 89 white-ball matches in that time.

So where Australia go beyond Finch if Cummins doesn't want to captain is questionable.

Cummins was Finch's deputy for the most recent T20 World Cup, after regular vice-captain Alex Carey was left out of the squad.

Carey had previously been Finch's right-hand man in the one-day format of the game, but is at risk of losing his spot to up-and-comer Josh Inglis.

Steve Smith, who was welcomed back into the leadership fold with his Test vice-captaincy appointment on Friday, will be 34 by the next ODI World Cup.

Mitch Marsh could be another option, having been identified as a leader back in 2018 and still only 30.

Marsh has captained Western Australia since 2017-18 and was mentioned by both Shane Warne and Ian Healy this week as possible long-term candidates for the red-ball role.

Australian Associated Press