Pat Cummins aims for Ashes return amid fitness concerns

Pat Cummins is set to return for Australia in the second Ashes Test, but he may not be able to play the entire series.

sarah

Nov 6, 2025 - 22:55

Pat Cummins aims for Ashes return amid fitness concerns

The Australian captain, Pat Cummins, has been bowling several overs with a shortened run-up and has targeted a return to the team for the second Ashes Test against England in Brisbane from December 4, a day-night match.

The fast bowler has been sidelined since July with a lower back problem and missed the first match of the series in Perth, where Steve Smith will captain in his place.

Mitchell Starc, Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne.

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Scott Boland is expected to replace Cummins in the fast bowling attack in Perth, but Cummins said he is ready to play with the pink ball at the Gabba a week later.

“That’s the goal and we’re planning towards that second Test,” Cummins said. “Until you get a little closer, you don’t really know where you’re at. The good thing is I’m recovering well and the body feels really good.

“We’re trying to keep that second Test as a live option. I’ll bowl a lot in Perth, and then I’ll know where I’m at.”

Cummins, who has been a part of the Australian team in Ashes matches since making his Test debut against England in the 2017-18 series, said there is still uncertainty about how much of the series he will be able to play.

“I don’t want to commit to anything too far ahead at the moment. I want to play as much as I can,” Cummins said.

“But realistically, if we play a big match and bowl 40 or 50 overs and then another match starts a few days later, that could be really tough.” "I'm trying to get myself right, and if I get myself right then hopefully I'll try and play as much as I can." There is a four-day gap between the end of the third Test in Adelaide and the fourth Test in Melbourne, and another four-day break before the fifth and final Test in Sydney.

Australia announced their squad for the first Test on Wednesday, with Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc, Boland, Sean Abbott and Brendan Doggett included as fast-bowling options.

Meanwhile, Cummins defended Australia's selectors, dismissing Steve Waugh's concerns about changes to the Test team.

Waugh made headlines on Wednesday when he accused chief selector George Bailey of rarely showing interest in making the tough decisions necessary for an aging team.

The legendary Test player also said that players shouldn't publicly pressure selectors over team selection, that it's solely the job of Bailey and his panel.

But Cummins insisted on Thursday that he doesn't think the players have any power, that the selectors have generally "done the right thing" in their decisions and that the team is well-placed for the future through the use of white-ball cricket and Australia A tours.

"I think the selectors have done a really good job managing the transition," the injured Test captain said. "There's one-day cricket, T20 cricket, Australian A, Shield cricket. There are plenty of pathways to upskill the next players who are going to debut for Australia down the track.

"We've been really lucky that a lot of our players have probably played longer in their careers than previous players. So we haven't had to see that transition. Even three or four years ago there was the same conversation that the end is nigh." But some of these players, the way they take care of themselves... they're amazing." An extraordinary act of selflessness:

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