"It should happen more" - Cummins calls for more pacers as captains as he squares off against Jasprit Bumrah in 1st AUS vs IND 2024 TestÂ
Australia skipper Pat Cummins feels pacers leading teams in international cricket should no longer be an anomaly. He will face Jasprit Bumrah, as the Indian pacer is set to lead India in the first Border-Gavaskar series Test in Perth in Rohit Sharma's absence.
Cummins, who was thrust with captaincy unexpectedly in late 2021, has flourished in the role. The right-arm pacer has led Australia to an Ashes series win, the World Test Championship (WTC), and the 2023 ODI World Cup so far. A Test series win against India has been one of Australia's biggest roadblocks for a while and is one of the few unticked boxes as far as Cummins' captaincy reign is concerned.
Bumrah has led one Test in the past, but there are not many pacers leading their teams in world cricket. In the past, the likes of Imran Khan, Courtney Walsh, Shaun Pollock, and Bob Willis have captained their respective nations.
"It should happen more (pacers leading teams)," Cummins said during the pre-match press conference in Perth ahead of the first Test (via RevSportz Global on X).
With Cameron Green ruled out of the series, Australia's fourth seamer debacle required a resolution. All-rounder Mitchell Marsh is the leading candidate despite his injury record while Marnus Labuschagne has also emerged as a late left-field choice.
"He'll definitely bowl in this Test. He's an all rounder. With four pacers, we didn't our all rounders to bowl a lot of overs. He has been bowling well at the nets," Cummins spoke of Marsh.
Another crisis that Australia needed to resolve during the build-up to the series was the hunt for a new opening batter. After Steve Smith was restored to No. 4, there was a vacancy at the top of the order alongside Usman Khawaja. After a thorough search ranging from domestic candidates to unorthodox options, the management landed on Nathan McSweeney.
"He should play his natural game. He shouldn't try to imitate David Warner. That's not his game. As long as he makes the bowlers bowl again and again, that's his game," Cummins said of McSweeney..
The Border-Gavaskar series is scheduled to begin from November 22 onwards. The Optus Stadium in Perth will host the first Test.
"For the players, don't think it'll be a distraction" - Pat Cummins on the IPL auction running concurrently with the first Test
The build-up to the first Test has been dominated to a degree by the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) mega-auction. The event is scheduled for November 24 and 25 in Jeddah, midway through the series opener in Perth. Select personnel in Australia involved in coaching and broadcasting are being forced to recuse themselves to be present at the auction table.
As far as the players are concerned in both camps, most of them are going under the hammer. There will be a lot of focus on the likes of Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, Mohammed Siraj, and Mitchell Starc, who are touted to be among the biggest signings at the mega auction.
"For the players, don't think it'll be a distraction. Most of them have been in auction before so it's about going about the business as usual," Cummins said (via RevSportz Global on X).
Cummins was retained by the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) after guiding the franchise to the finals in his first season as captain in IPL 2024. Emerging all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy, touted to make his Test debut in Perth, is also on the retention list.
"He is an impressive youngster. Didn't bowl much for SRH. He can swing the ball and a really talented kid," Cummins said.
The Andhra player has been backed to take on the seam bowling all-rounder role for the side and bring depth and balance.