Pat Cummins closes in on Ashes return, vision of Aussie quick to terrify every English fan
English fans’ misery has gone from bad to worse as vision of Pat Cummins emerged ahead of the second Ashes Test in Brisbane.
Footage that will delight Aussie cricket fans and make the Poms shudder has emerged, with Pat Cummins spotted getting reps in with the pink ball ahead of the second Ashes Test.
On Tuesday, Cummins was spotted in the nets with the pink pill at Cricket NSW headquarters ahead of the second day-night Test next week.
Josh Hazlewood was also back training alongside the Aussie skipper, but he is still set to be a few weeks away from action.
Cummins has ramped up his net sessions, and the lingering back injury that saw him miss Game 1 appears to be in the back mirror as he was seen charging in again and looks on track to play in Brisbane.
The 32-year-old had always targeted the second Test, but coach Andrew McDonald stopped short of declaring he will play when speaking to the media on Monday.
“For those who saw him (Cummins) in Perth — I did say this a while back, that he will be up and bowling in Perth, and people will be sitting there questioning why he’s not playing,” McDonald said.
You can watch Pat Cummins firing in the pink ball in the player above.
“That was what presented to us. It looked like a player that was nearing the completion of his rehabilitation.
“The intensity was there, the ball speed was there.
“So there’s a lot of positives there, but now it’s just really building that resilience there, and making sure that we’re not putting him in harm’s way in terms of accelerating it too much.
“But it will be a genuine discussion leading into this Test match, and that may be one that eventuates late for us.”
Hazlewood, who missed the first Test with a hamstring injury, was bowling with a red ball, and McDonald believes he will be available at some point this series.
“He’s working through the first week of his rehab,” McDonald said on Monday of Hazlewood.
“I’m not sure that we need to give an update on that.
“Once he gets further down the track and has some rough timelines, then we’ll be in a position to communicate that.
“I know that he’ll be available at some point during the series.
“We’ve got a little bit of that early rehab to go through to formulate where he may plug into the series, but we expect him to take some part in the series.”
Usman Khawaja headache looms
The more pressing concern will be deciding on who opens the batting come Brisbane, with Travis Head starring at the top of the order as Usman Khawaja battled back spasms in Perth.
Khawaja is reportedly confident of proving his fitness for the second Ashes Test, leaving Australia with a selection dilemma.
Khawaja has been a regular in the Test side for several years, but his form in the last two summers has left a lot to be desired.
If, as expected, Khawaja proves his fitness, the selectors will have to decide whether to again partner him with Weatherald and leave Head back down the order or pull the trigger and use the chance to end the veteran’s Test career.
In the past two years, he has only scored one Test century and surpassed 50 on one other occasion.
However, former Australia wicketkeeper Ian Healy believes Khawaja should be picked for the second Test if he’s fit.
“I’m saying, ‘right, you’re in, but now it’s time to perform’,” Healy told SEN.
“If he can’t come up with his back injury, then it’s probably time to replace.”
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Originally published as Pat Cummins closes in on Ashes return, vision of Aussie quick to terrify every English fan
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