Pat Cummins announces comeback date during Ashes opener in Perth
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Australian paceman and captain Pat Cummins has been ruled out of action since the West Indies tour, and his return is highly anticipated as well as necessary for Australia amid the summer Ashes. The pacer showed some good signs at the nets on Day 1 of the first Test in Perth.
The Ashes is underway in Australia, and both Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood have missed the opening fixture at Perth. This has been a massive blow to the Aussies, as they do not have two of their best bowlers in that breathtaking fast bowling trio.
Mitchell Starc, the only bowler left from the trio, troubled the English batters with a seven-wicket haul, but the England pacers have proved that it was not the best effort from Australia since the others kept leaking runs. England, who have unleashed their full attack, have been more restrictive at runs from all ends, while wickets kept falling at regular intervals.
Pat Cummins refers to good signs ahead of the Gabba Test; Sets hopes for a much-awaited return
The earlier reports had just claimed that Pat Cummins had been ruled out of the first Test, with his return anticipated anytime in the series. Cummins last played for Australia during their Test series in the Caribbean.
During a recent conversation between 7Cricket anchor Ricky Ponting, Aaron Finch, and Pat Cummins, the Australian skipper revealed how he has been feeling lately and expects a return.
"Probably on track, if not probably better than I would have thought a month or so ago. You know a lot can go wrong when you go from nothing to trying to build up. Fortunately, so far everything has felt great and it's coming out really well."
"I am probably surprised myself. Yeah, obviously, I will do more work this week and then have a couple of days off. All going pretty well so far," said Cummins.
"Currently, I am going out in three-day cycles at the moment, so you kind of ball and I have been bowling, say upto 10 overs and then have kind of 2 or 4 rest days, let the bone and body recover and then go again. You kind of tick that box and move to the next session," he added.
"We'll say, obviously, Brisbane's is about two weeks away, and I have a few more sessions and see if that's a chance," Cummins said, issuing a slight chance of a comeback, though not in the most positive tones.
🗣️ "On track, if not probably better than I would have thought a month or so ago."
— 7Cricket (@7Cricket) November 21, 2025
The latest update on Pat Cummins' recovery from the man himself... pic.twitter.com/JDeJuo3UYo
Josh Hazlewood's snub could speed up Cummins' return
Another veteran Australian speedster, Josh Hazlewood, was ruled out of the first Test in Perth. The lanky pacer was Australia's best man on show during the previous white-ball games against New Zealand and India.
Hazlewood went on to prepare for the Ashes with the Sheffield Shield games for New South Wales; however, he sustained an injury to his hamstring. This injury initially ruled him out of the Perth Test, and now, with a delayed recovery, he has been ruled out of the second Test at Brisbane as well.
This might further push Pat Cummins to return earlier than expected, as Mitchell Starc would need someone by his side, as Scott Boland did not turn out to be very effective on this occasion at Perth.
Australia limp halfway through their innings with not half of the runs on the board
Australia packed up the First Day with England staging a stunning comeback with the ball after the Australian bowlers had restricted England to a very low total. The Aussies finally went past the 100-run mark after Alex Carey and Mitchell Starc scored some crucial runs.
However, by then, 6 of the Australian batters were back in the hut, and the England pacers Jofra Archer and Brydon Carse had troubled them enough with their pace and sudden bounce. However, skipper Ben Stokes, who also had two wickets in the innings, executed more of the plan against the Australian batters.
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Australia National Cricket Team England National Cricket Team Australia vs England England vs Australia Pat Cummins Josh Hazlewood Mitchell Starc
