Pat Cummins rules himself equipped for third Test against India

Pat Cummins is all set to prove his worth and seems to be oozing with confidence as he declares himself ready to face India in his second spell as a Test cricketer in his career. The bowler is expected to feature for the Australian side as a replacement of stormy pacer Mitchell Starc who has been ruled out with injury.

It has been a long 5 years for Cummins since he made his debut against South Africa and delivered a stellar performance. But luck was not on his side as he remained out of the big scene for the major part of his career.

Cummins was scheduled to feature for New South Wales in Western Australia but a dramatic turn of events changed the whole scenario for the 23-year-old. The right arm fast bowler is now expected to lead the Aussie bowling attack in the third Test in Ranchi with teammate Josh Hazlewood. He has also been tested with his pace and fitness ahead of the 3rd encounter between the two teams.

“In some ways it does [feel like a second debut]. To be honest, it’s not very fresh. It feels like so much has happened in those five or six years. But I think since that day this is easily the most prepared I have been for a Test match in terms of body, form and the length that I have been playing the last few months. So, in some ways it feels like my first game. But being part of the Aussie squad with ODIs and T20s, it is a pretty familiar surrounding,” said Pat Cummins.

Cricket Australia have been keeping a close eye on the bowler over the years and has also kept him under checkups to bring his body to a level to compete freely at the international level. The main intention was to keep him free of all the foot and shoulder injuries that restricted his career and sidelined him after his impressive debut against the Proteas.

Recently at NSW’s Shield fixture in Wollongong, Cummins was fit and free to play but not risked in order to give him as many training sessions as possible to steadily build up his workload and avoid the “spikes” that CA’s sports science division judge the greatest risk factors for injuries to fast bowlers.

However,  Pat Cummins has his eyes set on the Australian Ashes squad and is ready to push himself to the boundaries for that. The Ashes is of much more importance to the bowler than playing in the Border-Gavaskar trophy.

“I’d set myself little steps of getting back into the one-day side, and from that hopefully getting back into the Test side,” he said. “But I didn’t think it was going to happen this quickly. I’d always had an eye on the Ashes next year, just thinking that I had to play three or four Shield games to put my hand up for selection. It has certainly come a lot quicker, but I always thought I’d get back here.”

His debut at the Wanderers against the South Africans has already proved that Cummins is a cricketer with brains and knows the value of the Ranchi Test. A win over India, the number one Test side in the world would be a big achievement for the bowler on his return. It would also be a start towards the process of building a young Australian Test squad under the captaincy of Steve Smith.

“Being at home for the first two Tests, I really appreciated how much passion is in this tour and how much Test cricket means. A big Indian tour like this can really identify a team and Steve Smith’s captaincy,” he said. “I’ve just been pumped watching it at home and to be over and potentially being part of the series is really cool.

“India is a tour that really brings the team and the squad together, it doesn’t feel like a tour where there are one or two stand-outs. Everyone in the eleven needs to contribute. Winning over here is just one of those things that can bring a team together. And bring them together for the next 10 years or so.”