“We’ve run out of time,” Andrew McDonald, the Australian head coach, said dejectedly as he confirmed on Monday that skipper Pat Cummins will miss the Ashes 2025-26 opener in Perth, having not yet begun his bowling regime as he recovers from a back injury.
Cummins experienced discomfort in his back during the tour of the West Indies. Then, upon returning home, he was diagnosed with a lumbar stress injury in September, ruling him out of all the following white-ball action as he began recovery to be fit for the home Ashes series.
AUS vs ENG: When will the Ashes 2025-26 start?
The first Test of this year’s Ashes series will be played in Perth from November 21.
Australia are hoping for Cummins to return in the second Test, slated to begin on December 4 in Brisbane, giving him a month’s time now; McDonald also confirmed that Cummins will resume bowling this week.
Who will captain Australia in 1st Ashes Test after Pat Cummins is ruled out?
Steve Smith is set to lead Australia in the 1st Test against England in the Ashes 2025-26 after Cummins was ruled out due to a back injury. Smith has been the vice-captain in Cummins’ tenure as the Australian Test skipper since the 2021/22 Ashes. In this period, Smith has led Australia in six Test matches in Cummins’ absence, winning five of those, including one in the 2021/22 Ashes in Adelaide and in the 2023 BGT against India in Indore.
Scott Boland, whose dream debut figures of 6/7 against England in Melbourne in the 2021/22 Ashes are part of Ashes folklore, will take Cummins’ position as the third pacer in Australia’s bowling attack.
While Australia won’t have any problem replacing Cummins’s role as a captain and a bowler with Smith and Boland, respectively, the hosts are still unsure of their batting personnel and combination.
The failures of Sam Konstas in the West Indies are all but certain to see him get dropped from the XI. On the other hand, Marnus Labuschagne, who was dropped from the West Indies tour, is looking very likely to walk back into the XI, having hit four centuries in his last five domestic innings.
But Labuschagne might be tasked to open alongside Usman Khawaja after Cameron Green managed scores of 52, 46, and 42 in his last three innings in the West Indies at No. 3 on challenging pitches.
Steve Smith, Travis Head, and Alex Carey form the core of the middle order. Beau Webster, who was the Player of the Match in his debut Test against India in Sydney in the BGT 2024-25 and has impressive numbers in his seven-Test career so far, is likely to be a pace-bowling all-rounder with Cameron Green managing his bowling workload.
Ashes 2025-26 : Australia XI For Ashes 1st Test In Perth After Pat Cummins Was Ruled Out – Predicted
Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Cameron Green, Steve Smith (C), Travis Head, Alex Carey (wk), Beau Webster, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Scott Boland, Josh Hazlewood
The backups in the squad are likely to be Matt Renshaw, Sean Abbott, and Jhye Richardson. While Australia’s first XI looks as strong as it has been in the last few years, despite Cummins’ absence, they could have a problem at hand if one of the pacers gets injured with Cummins still recovering.
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