The Australian captain has been out due to injury for a long time and as per his claims, his possible comeback can be made only after bowling in the nets for about four to six weeks. Pat Cummins has temporarily bowled with short run-ups.
The Ashes is the next target for Team Australia after the end of the 5-match T20 series against India. The Indian T20I series has started in Canberra, which has been disrupted by rain again. Australia, who are on top of the ICC World Test Championship table, are expected to continue their good performance in the home Ashes.
However, the preparations have been dealt a major blow with their captain Pat Cummins being ruled out of the first game. His earliest return to the field is expected to be in the second game at the Gabba in Brisbane.
Pat Cummins returns to bowling amid the race for Ashes comeback
Pat Cummins has been out of competitive cricket for almost 4 months. He last played on the West Indies tour of Australia in July and then suffered back pain, which was later diagnosed as a lumbar stress injury.
After the injury, his comeback plans before the India tour suffered a setback. As per the latest reports, Pat Cummins has made a temporary return to the field and was seen bowling in the nets in Sydney.
However, what seemed strange was Cummins’ short run-up during the net session. He bowled with a five-step run-up, which meant he was not ready to make a comeback yet, but he has taken steps to speed up his comeback.
When Cummins took part in his first net session in months at the New South Wales headquarters, according to the AAP, physio Patrick Farhart and New South Wales strength and conditioning coach Dean McNamara kept a close eye on him.
Andrew McDonald expects Pat Cummins to return in second Test
Earlier, Cummins had revealed that he would not return to international cricket before a 4-6 week practice session, which was later confirmed by Australian head coach Andrew McDonald.
“We flagged it about a week ago, that it would take about a little over four weeks to get it up and running,” McDonald told reporters on Monday. “We’re out of time [for the first Test]”Unfortunately, but we are really optimistic and looking forward to the second Test match.”
“It will never be a clear deadline,” the Australian coach said on Cummins’ return.
McDonald further said that nothing can be said about any specific time frame for Cummins’ return, because the kind of injury he has suffered is not a shock, but due to constant stress due to workload. As a result, Cummins was not even forced to reduce his deadline for a comeback ahead of the white-ball series against India.
“The next question is what is the time frame, what does it look like for the second Test? [I am] I’m not really able to answer that, except to say he’ll be bowling this week, and that’s a big step forward,” McDonald confirmed.
He said, “Given the nature of this injury, there will be no clear time limit… I would never put that kind of pressure on the medical team.”
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