New Delhi: Australian head coach Andrew McDonald has provided an update on captain Pat Cummins. He missed the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka due to the birth of his second child and a knee injury, which he was nursing during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Australia’s ODI players, who are not part of the Test tour will fly out to Sri Lanka on Thursday but the head coach revealed that Cummins was unlikely to be among them. He said that the Australian skipper hasn’t been able to resume any type of bowling.
“Pat Cummins hasn’t been able to resume any type of bowling so he’s heavily unlikely, so that would mean that we do need a captain,” McDonald told SEN. He said that the team management is having conversations with Steve Smith and Travis Head and they are the two players management is looking at for the captaincy role.
McDonald further said that Steve has done a great job in the first Test match against Sri Lanka and has done some good work in ODI cricket across the journey as well so it’s between Head and Steve Smith.
“But, as I said, Patty is hugely unlikely, which is a bit of shame, and we’ve also got Josh Hazlewood, who is battling [to be fit] at the moment. So that medical information will land over the next couple of days and we’ll be able to shore that up and let everyone know the direction” McDonald added.
Hazlewood is currently dealing with a hip issue after recovering from the side and calf injuries. He missed three of the five Test matches against India and the Test tour of Sri Lanka. Australian all-rounder Mitchell Marsh has already been ruled out of the Champions Trophy due to a back injury and is unlikely to play the remainder of the domestic season. There is a possibility that he could still play for the Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL.
Australia’s preliminary squad for Champions Trophy 2025
Pat Cummins (c), Alex Carey, Nathan Ellis, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Matt Short, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa.
Australia captain Pat Cummins is highly unlikely to participate in the Champions Trophy due to an ankle issue, with Steve Smith and Travis Head emerging as the leading candidates to take over the captaincy. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
