"That'll be the focus" - Pat Cummins keen to be in full tilt for India series after skipping England and Scotland white-ball tour
Australian captain Pat Cummins has mentioned that he has already planned to skip the Scotland and England tour to prepare for the upcoming home season. The 31-year-old stated that his firm focus is on gearing up for the home Test series against India.
In a bid to regain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Australia will face India in a five-Test series, beginning on November 23. The Aussies lost the last two Test series to India on home soil; hence, Cummins will hope to lead their side to a win.
Speaking to ESPN Cricinfo, the right-arm pacer, who is currently playing in Major League Cricket (MLC), said he will get himself up to full tilt ahead of the home season in the remaining six to eight weeks. He elaborated:
"That window has always been earmarked as a time to really give my body a rest and do close to a full pre-season. I should get six or eight weeks off bowling and then build up again. Once this MLC opportunity came up and we mapped out the plan, it didn't really change much."
"I'll get home, I'll have a good six or eight weeks off bowling where I'll get in the gym every day, do some running, and get some strength back into my body. And then we've got a big Test match series [against India] for our home summer, so that'll be the focus."
Cummins has had a busy last few months. He played all the matches in IPL 2024, captaining the SunRisers Hyderabad to the final. He traveled almost immediately to the West Indies for T20 World Cup 2024 and had a short break before linking up with the San Francisco Unicorns for MLC 2024.
"We spend ten-plus months of the year away on the road" - Pat Cummins
Cummins went on to claim that for all-format players, it's all about prioritizing and picking the right series these days to hit their peak form, given the amount of cricket being played. He added:
"Everyone's a little bit more realistic about the schedules nowadays. We spend ten-plus months of the year away on the road, so some tours probably carry a little bit more importance than others. For the guys that play all three formats, you're always trying to make sure you're peaking for those major events - and it feels like there's been about ten major events in the last 18 months, so I haven't really taken much time to reinvest back in my body."
Australia faced a shock Super 8 exit in the T20 World Cup 2024 after defeats to India and Afghanistan.