Australia captain Pat Cummins and fellow paceman Josh Hazlewood will sit out another Ashes Test with injury while opening batter Usman Khawaja has been retained in an unchanged squad for the second match in Brisbane.
Cummins sat out his side’s two-day win at Perth Stadium due to an ongoing back issue, but had bowled sharply in the nets during the build-up and appeared to be tracking well for an appearance at the Gabba.
He did further fitness work and bowled at stand-in skipper Steve Smith during a practice session in Sydney on Friday, but was subsequently left out as Cricket Australia named an identical 14-strong group.
There was no explanation for Cummins’ absence, with a brief accompanying statement simply stating: “Pat Cummins will travel to Brisbane to continue his preparations. The squad assembles in Brisbane from Sunday.”
With the 32-year-old on hand in Queensland, it is not outside the realms of possibility he could be added to the squad in the coming days but it would be an irregular move having made the initial call to leave him out.
While Australia won without Cummins’ input in the series opener, his ongoing absence still represents a major boost for England.
Mitchell Starc, player of the match for a 10-wicket showing in Perth, may be Test cricket’s leading wicket-taker in day/night games with 81, but Cummins is joint second on 43 having played five fewer than his left-arm team-mate.
With an average of 17.34, a strike-rate of a wicket every 37.2 balls and a best of six for 23 – taken at the Gabba in 2019 – he is a world-class operator under the lights.
Josh Hazlewood is continuing his recovery from a hamstring strain that ruled him out of Perth
With Hazlewood also out once again, Brendan Doggett and Scott Boland will again back up Starc.
Opener Khawaja is also retained despite suffering back spasms that curtailed his involvement throughout the first Test and saw Travis Head take over at opener with a match-winning effort in the fourth innings.
Whether he holds his spot in the XI remains to be seen, with Josh Inglis fresh off a century against the England Lions and all-rounder Beau Webster on hand as an additional seam option.
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Atherton and Hussain discuss whether Joe Root’s legacy as an all-time great will be impacted if he fails to score an Ashes century in Australia
Australia second Test squad
Steve Smith (captain), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Brendan Doggett, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Mitchell Starc, Jake Weatherald, Beau Webster.
Ashes series in Australia 2025-26
All times UK and Ireland
First Test (Perth – November 21-25): Australia beat England by eight wicketsSecond Test (day/night): Thursday December 4 – Monday December 8 (4am) – The Gabba, BrisbaneThird Test: Wednesday December 17 – Sunday December 21 (11.30pm) – Adelaide OvalFourth Test: Thursday December 25 – Monday December 29 (11.30pm) – Melbourne Cricket GroundFifth Test: Sunday January 4 – Thursday January 8 (11.30pm) – Sydney Cricket Ground
