Former Australian skippers laud Pat Cummins’ brilliant World Cup captaincy

It’s been a banner year for the Australian cricket team and former captains say it’s time to give skipper Pat Cummins the credit he deserves.

Ricky Ponting has declared it’s time for Australian cricket fans to fully embrace Pat Cummins as the national captain after a “faultless” World Cup added to a World Test Championship and successful Ashes campaign in the space of six months.

Tim Paine, the man Cummins replaced as Test captain, also said there was not “a thing” the now World Cup-winning skipper got wrong in an epic final win over India that consolidated his place in the game’s history.

Despite his successes since taking over the team’s leadership, Cummins has endured criticism over his role in former coach Justin Langer’s sacking and for his views on environmental issues and tactical nous both during the drawn Ashes series and even early in the World Cup.

But Ponting was adamant the criticism had always been misguided and the World Cup triumph was as much due to Cummins’ leadership as the on-field efforts of his team.

“I think that’s been almost faultless, to be honest,” Ponting said in the wake of Australia’s six-wicket win.

“I thought his leadership actually has got better and better right through the tournament.

Pat Cummins is being praised for his leadership. Picture: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

“I don’t know where the negativity’s come from because there’s been no real basis for it.

“You look at their overall Test record since he’s been captain is outstanding. And now he’s a World Cup-winning captain, a World Test Championship-winning captain and a captain who retained the Ashes, so that negativity needs to be put aside now because there have been a number of moments – think back to the first Test of the Ashes – where he stood up and actually got the job done himself.

“Under extreme pressure with bat or ball, it’s generally been him when his team’s in trouble who’s changed the course of the game, so he thoroughly deserves every plaudit that comes his way as far as leadership is concerned.”

Paine was effusive in his praise for Cummins, who took it upon himself to bowl long spells in the final while rotating his other bowlers, having also made crucial runs in the miracle win over Afghanistan in the pool matches as well as the semi-final victory over South Africa.

“I don’t think there was a thing last night that Pat Cummins got wrong. He was outstanding and he deserves a lot of credit for that,” he told SEN.

“I thought Pat Cummins had one of the great games as the captain and then when he bowled, that’s as good as I have seen him for a while.

Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitch Marsh have every reason to celebrate. Picture: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

“He hasn’t had his best World Cup, but last night, and we’ve spoken about this a lot, Australia has players who stand up in the big moments because they’ve been there before and Cummins did that not just with his leadership but with the ball.

“When he went full speed, he was hitting the wicket hard and I thought he set the tone. His captaincy brilliant, his bowling was outstanding and we were brilliant in the field as well.”

Cummins has captained the Australians to the World Test Championship, the Ashes and the World Cup in the same calendar year.