Australia cricket team captain Pat Cummins has claimed that he is ready to take the risks to participate in the Ashes despite injury concerns. Cricket Australia confirmed on Tuesday that the all-rounder has sustained a lumbar bone stress but were confident of his availability for the 1st Test against England which is scheduled to commence from November 21. Ahead of the five-match Test series, Cummins has opened up on the probability of featuring in the series despite injury.
Cummins willing to take part in Ashes
As per ESPNCricinfo, Cummins expressed interest in taking some extra risks and being a part of the prestigious Ashes despite being injured. The Australian captain’s remarks indicate that he does not want to follow the method than India are using with Jasprit Burmah – picking and choosing Tests as a part of workload management. Bumrah, who sustained a back injury during the IND vs AUS 5th Test earlier in January, opted to play in just 3 out of 5 games against England. Cummins has stated that he is willing do so otherwise.
“It’s a big Ashes series. It doesn’t get much bigger, so I think you’re willing to take a few risks and be a little bit aggressive to try and play as much Test [cricket] as you can,” Cummins said.
The last time Cummins was injured was during the six-year gap between his 1st Test in 2011 and his second in 2017. He was dealing with an ankle injury earlier this year but that was something minor in nature. While he will miss the T20I series against England and the ODIs against India, Australia are confident that Cummins will be fit in time for the Ashes opener in Brisbane.
“In terms of the gym work and getting on top of a lot of those other physical things that he likes to get on top of before big series, I’m pretty confident that’ll work out,” Australia chief selector George Bailey stated.
