Captains Pat Cummins and Joe Root go toe to toe in Ashes scrap

Pat Cummins has the wood on Joe Root in toe to toe contests, which should hold him in good stead as they meet for the first time as captains

Australian captain Pat Cummins and his English counterpart Joe Root at the Gabba

It’s not a rare thing for skippers to be targeted in a cricket series, however the Ashes contest starting at the Gabba on Wednesday promises the rarest and most tantalising of contests: two captains toe-to-toe in a winner-takes-all battle.

High office has long been the province of batsmen who shake hands at the toss then dispatch the foot soldiers to do the dirty work for them. In the 2021-22 series we have a pace-bowling Australian captain, Pat Cummins, who will take on the English top order specialist, Joe Root.

The Australian is the No. 1 ranked bowler in the world, the Englishman the No. 1 ranked batter.

Cummins indicated on Sunday he will probably allow Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood to open the bowling. It is fair to assume, however, he will be calling for the Kookaburra when Root makes his way to the crease at the fall of the second wicket.

Root averages 39 against Australia and has been dismissed seven times in Test matches by Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood and Cummins. Starc has his scalp on five occasions

It is the new Australian skipper who is the more efficient and effective taking his wicket every 48 balls at a cost of 20 runs. Lyon, Hazlewood and Starc concede 46, 36 and 45 runs before eventual success.

“I don’t know if the captaincy brings a different element for me, but the last few series we’ve played against him he’s always been our prized wicket,” Cummins said. “Not necessarily the one we talk about the most, but he’s No. 1 batter in the world at the moment and he’s their captain, so it’s going to be a big battle for us.”

Cummins described the setting up and dismissal of Root late on first day at the Gabba four years ago as “maybe the most satisfying wicket of my career”.

The Australians, naturally, identified the Englishman as the batter they “really needed to make a statement against” and devised a plan.

In the first innings of that series Cummins dragged Root outside off with three overs of outswing before attempting an inswinger that trapped the batsman dead in front for 15. He then proceeded to dismiss the Englishman in the first innings of the next three Tests for 9, 20 and 61.

Bowling Root for a golden duck in Manchester in 2019 later replaced the Gabba dismissal as Cummins’s favourite.

Root has shown every indication, however, that his batting has gone up a notch or two since. The Yorkshireman with the quiet voice and steely resolve has compiled 1455 runs at an average of 66 and scored six centuries while the Australians have watched indolently from afar.

Root is a far more determined character than appearances would have you believe and brings vast experience (109 Tests) to the crease and to the captaincy. He currently stands behind only Alastair Cook in runs compiled across a career and as skipper.

The Gabba will mark the 60th time he has led England, but it is a first for Cummins as leader of Australia.

Root says victory in the series will define his captaincy.

“You look at how hard it has been for English captains and English teams, over the years, it doesn’t happen very often,” he said. “Of course it will define my captaincy. I’m not naive enough to think that it won’t, but then again what a great opportunity. I’m very excited about it and I can’t wait for the series to get going.”

Cummins confirmed the XI for Brisbane that was revealed in The Weekend Australian on Saturday. Usman Khawaja misses out for Travis Head, Marcus Harris opens and Alex Carey keeping.

The new captain confirmed that the decision to choose Head over Khawaja was “a tight one”

“Selectors make the call but they’re just both really good options and have had really strong form,” he said.

“I think the experience is great from Uzzie and we feel really lucky to have that in the squad, but Trav has played a lot for us the last couple of years and he’s gone away and churned out runs over in England and here in Australia and we feel like he’s really ready to go.”

England have Jack Leach and Dom Bess in the squad as slow bowlers, but could be tempted to use three frontline pacemen and two all-rounders — Chris Woakes and Ben Stokes — instead of a spinner.

“We’ve got all the options on the table right now,” Root said. “We are not going to name a team just yet. We will have to see what a closer forecast is and how that pitch changes over the next couple of days.

“As well I do think it’s a good place to bowl spin. Speak to some of the great spinners and they have played for Australia and they have always enjoyed bowling here. It’s something that we will weigh up, something we will consider. But we are not in a position to make a call now.”