Captaining Australia in all three formats ‘not realistic’ for Test skipper Pat Cummins

Pat Cummins concedes it’s “not realistic” for him to lead the Aussie side in three formats, but said ODI captaincy would be a “huge privilege”.

Pat Cummins of Australia. Photo by Buddhika Weerasinghe/Getty Images

Australian bowler Pat Cummins has conceded it’s “not realistic” for him to captain the national side in all three formats, but said it would be a “huge privilege” to lead the ODI team at next year’s World Cup if he was offered the job.

Aaron Finch’s retirement from ODI cricket has left the Australian team with two vacancies ahead of the 50-over World Cup in India — a captain and an opening batter.

Australia has no men’s ODIs scheduled until November, and a final decision on Finch’s successor is not expected to be announced until after the T20 World Cup.

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Cummins is one of the leading candidates, along with wicketkeeper Alex Carey, but the 29-year-old paceman is adamant he does not want anything to disrupt his Test captaincy.

“Being a captain in all three formats, if you had to play every game, is just not realistic,” he told News Corp reporters at Kayo’s summer of cricket launch at the SCG.

“If it comes up and it works, it would obviously be a huge privilege, but if not, it’s totally fine.

“I don’t want anything to take away from my role as Test captain, so there’d be a bit to work through.”

Due to the oversaturated cricket schedule, it has become increasingly difficult for professional players to commit to all three formats — particularly pace bowlers.

England all-rounder Ben Stokes recently announced his retirement from ODI cricket at the tender age of 31, while Black Caps paceman Trent Boult came to a landmark deal with New Zealand Cricket allowing him to prioritise domestic leagues over international duties.

Cummins acknowledged that if he was offered the ODI captaincy, he’d rely heavily on a deputy to step in when juggling formats.

“If the captaincy goes to a bowler and there are times that you need to prioritise other formats, a vice-captain could step in – whether it’s a keeper or a batter,” he explained.

“It’s probably different to what we’ve all grown up watching, the way that captains and teams operate, but the reality is there’s a lot more cricket nowadays in the schedule.

“We play 12 months of the year, three different formats. It might look differently, depends on how you structure it.”

Cummins has been an outspoken advocate for Australian teammate David Warner to rejoin the captaincy group, but one glaring hurdle stands in the way.

The veteran opener, one of the most experienced leaders in the national men’s side, has been banned from any captaincy positions since the infamous Cape Town sandpaper incident in 2018.

Last week, Finch called on Cricket Australia to overturn his opening partner’s lifelong ban, arguing the talented left-hander had served his time.

Warner, who led Australia in three ODIs in 2016, is more than willing to talk with CA about scrapping his captaincy ban, but suggested the ball was firmly in their court.

He plans to meet with CA chief executive Nick Hockley in the coming weeks for an open discussion about his captaincy ban.

The 35-year-old also hinted his strong stance in CA’s infamous pay war from 2017 was part of the reason he copped a lifetime leadership ban after the ball-tampering saga.

“Unfortunately a lot of the events before 2018 were with the board – the MOU stuff and all that,” Warner told News Corp on Tuesday morning.

“Things got over and above in terms of more than just Cape Town. There was more to it.

“I think that’s where my decision – the penalty that was handed down – was more of stuff that was happening before that.

“I think at the end of the day it’s about what questions do they (the CA board) want to ask me.

“That’s where the conversation starts and then we can lead from there. It’s almost a completely new board from when 2018 happened.

“I would be interested to see and hear what their thoughts are.”

David Warner at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Picture: Tim Hunter.

Warner expects Cummins to be offered the ODI captaincy, and the New South Welshman was happy to continue supporting his teammates in an unofficial leadership role.

“Obviously Pat has the Test captaincy, and he will be offered the job if he wants to take it and rightfully so,” he said.

“I think I have a lot of leadership qualities. And I know what I bring to the table as a leader, and I’ve still got that position anyway amongst the group.

“We all know each other so well, we all have a great knowledge of the game. So for us it’s about how do we use all that knowledge together and win games.

“I don’t think it’s about being given a second chance. I think it’s just about me just knuckling down and do what I’ve had to do which is playing cricket and scoring runs.

“I think that’s the main thing, coming back but still being a leader amongst my peers, leading by example on and off the field. I’ve showcased that very well.”