The Ashes 2015: Pat Cummins ready to answer Australia’s SOS despite lack of red-ball cricket

PAT Cummins insists he is ready and able to answer Australia’s Ashes SOS and step in for the retired Ryan Harris, despite a recent diet of white ball cricket.

CWC: Cricket World Cup Australia vs. Scotland, Bellerive Oval. BYLINE: LUKE BOWDEN: Pat Cummins bowling

PAT Cummins has been kept to a strict diet of white ball cricket for almost two years but insists he is ready to rumble if deployed in a heavy-duty Ashes Test.

The young tearaway quick has almost forgotten what a red ball looks like but had to remember quickly when he was sent an Ashes SOS after the shock retirement of Ryan Harris.

The injury-plagued 22-year-old, who made one of the most memorable debuts in Test history in Johannesburg in 2011, had been under Cricket Australia orders to limit his amount of first-class cricket.

COMEBACK: Cummins risks being undercooked for Ashes

COUNTDOWN: 30 greatest Ashes stars — 30 — 21

CLARKE: Ryno would run through a brick wall

But those plans went out the window when Harris broke down and retired.

Cummins, who has been training in Brisbane for the past month, admits he has had little long-form cricket in recent years but claims he would not be a risk if thrown into the Ashes cauldron.

“I feel ready to go,’’ Cummins declared, before flying out for England.

“My body has been great and I’ve been lucky I haven’t had to think about any niggles or anything for probably the last two years.

“It would be pretty seamless for me to go into a game (Test match) now.

“I feel as if the step up isn’t as big for me as it might have been a year or so ago.

“It is not the nicest circumstances with Ryano going down but it is a wonderful opportunity for myself.’’

Cummins was to tour India with Australia A this month and then be kept fresh for the start of NSW’s Sheffield Shield season.

Pat Cummins has been restricted to playing white ball cricket. Picture: Phil Hillyard

He had been training with the red SG (Indian) cricket balls but will now have to switch to the Duke balls used in England.

The young pace gun is aiming to play in Australia’s tour match against Derbyshire before the third Ashes Test — opening up the prospect of him playing in one of the final three matches of the Ashes.

“I’ve been up here in Brisbane trying to remember and learn how to swing the (red) ball consistently,’’ Cummins said.

“I really wanted to get back to bowling with the red ball as soon as possible, because I’m pretty impatient.

“But being held back was definitely the right thing for me.’’

Originally published as The Ashes 2015: Pat Cummins ready to answer Australia’s SOS despite lack of red-ball cricket