Australia’s Test captain has provided an update on his recovery from lumbar back stress ahead of the Ashes
Pat Cummins concedes he’s “less likely than likely” to suit up for next month’s Ashes opener in Perth as he begins to ramp up his training schedule ahead of his return to bowling.
While he admits he’s still “a couple of weeks away” from bowling on turf wickets, the Australian captain said he was feeling better with each session in his recovery from lumbar back stress.
Cummins resumed running last week and plans to start bowling drills next week. While he hasn’t given up hope, the 32-year-old believes he’ll be up against it to feature in November 21’s first Test against England.
“You’d want at least probably a month in the nets,” Cummins told reporters at the Kayo Sports Summer of Cricket launch in Sydney on Monday.
“If you play a Test match, you want to make sure you’re right to bowl 20 overs in a day and you don’t have to really think about it.
“So four weeks is pretty tight, but I think somewhere around that mark.
“I’m running today and running kind of every second day, and each run is a little bit longer.
“(Then I) get into bowling prep next week. (It’s) probably a couple of weeks away before I’m actually putting on the spikes and bowling out on turf.”
While coach Andrew McDonald said Cummins’ outlook had become more optimistic in the past week, next Friday (October 24) marks exactly four weeks until the Ashes opener at Perth Stadium.
“With these things, it’s pretty hard to go from not bowling or doing anything at all to suddenly playing five Tests,” said Cummins, speaking to the media for the first time since his back injury was announced last month.
“So first steps are trying to give (me) a shot at being right, and then we’ll work it out (how much he plays).”
Cummins added he was prepared to take a few more risks in his recovery given the series’ significance in the hope of playing as much of a role as possible against England.
“Next year isn’t as busy as other years, there’s a T20 World Cup (in February-March) but the bulk of Test matches aren’t until later in the year,” he said in an interview with cricket.com.au this morning.
“There’s a little bit of that aspect (taking more risk).
“This is the big series in this next six to 12-month block.
“But you’ve got to weigh that up against taking stupid risks as well that might cost you in the long-term.”
The right-armer hasn’t been able to put his finger on exactly when his back injury occurred but said he first noticed discomfort during Australia’s 3-0 sweep of West Indies in July.
“Realistically, bowling a lot and at high intensity puts you at risk,” Cummins said.
“Maybe it was sometime throughout last summer, maybe it’s been brewing for a little while, we don’t exactly know but West Indies was the first time I felt it.
“I’ve had a really good run … the last eight (home) summers I’ve played basically every single game.
“It’s a little bit of a different lead in (this year), hopefully I can still take part in the summer, but there’s enough to worry about just in bowling well and captaining, you don’t want to add an extra layer of having to worry about your body as well.
“So it’s frustrating, but it’s sport (and) it’s happened.”
Also helping put the national captain’s mind at ease is the form of the man likely to take his spot if he doesn’t recover in time to take his place in the XI in Perth.
“Scotty (Boland), he’s coming off a hat-trick, so no doubt he’ll be in for a big summer,” he said.
“In the last few years, one of the things we’ve done really well is when someone’s missed out, someone else has stepped straight in and done a brilliant job.
“It’s also nice looking around the (Sheffield) Shield and seeing guys do well and I’m sure they’ll continue to so the next few weeks.”
2025-26 NRMA Insurance Men’s Ashes
First Test: November 21-25, Perth Stadium, 1.30pm AEDT
Second Test: December 4-8, The Gabba, Brisbane (D/N), 3.30pm AEDT
Third Test: December 17-21: Adelaide Oval, 11am AEDT
Fourth Test: December 26-30: MCG, Melbourne, 10.30am AEDT
Fifth Test: January 4-8: SCG, Sydney, 10.30am AEDT
