Australia is prepared to carry Pat Cummins through the start of the T20 World Cup, even if he unavailable for the initial stages, according to chief selector George Bailey.
Cummins only played one Ashes Test as he made his return from a stress issue in his back, and was quickly put back on ice after Adelaide.
The skipper has already been ruled out of the short form series against Pakistan between the Ashes and the World Cup.
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However, he was named in the 15-man squad for the tournament, alongside injured pair Josh Hazlewood (Achilles) and Tim David (hamstring).
Pat Cummins in 2025. Getty Images for Cricket Austral
Australia has been drawn alongside Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Ireland and Oman in the initial stage of the T20 World Cup, with the top two teams advancing from that group.
They will go in as the heavy favourites in all matches, giving them the chance to carry Cummins if they believe he will be ready to go for the main bracket.
The Aussies did a similar thing with Travis Head in 2023, which ultimately proved crucial to their plans to ultimately win the ODI World Cup.
Bailey said their assumption is Hazlewood, who has missed the entire Ashes with Achilles and calf issues, will be ready to go for the World Cup, allowing them to take the risk with Cummins.
“I don’t think they [Cummins and Hazlewood] will be available for the Pakistan series [in January], but I think both should be online [for the World Cup],” Bailey told reporters at the SCG ahead of the fifth Test.
“Patty might be a bit later, that might be a similar sort of situation to Travis Head in the 50-over World Cup, where there’s an entry point at some point.
Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood bowl during a practise session. Getty
“Hopefully we can manage and carry a squad until that point. I think [Hazlewood] should be right by the start, think Tim David should be right by the start.
“You might get pushed into a corner where you can’t [manage the squad], and you might need to make adjustments in the squad.
“We were close to that having to be the case with Travis. It’s got to fit, but I guess the beauty is potentially (playing in) Colombo and Kandy you might be in a position where you can set the team up in different ways.
“We’ve obviously got some good all-round skills there, some good spin options. There’s different ways of structuring up the team where that might work out pretty naturally.”
The entire first stretch of the World Cup for the Aussies takes place in Sri Lanka, despite the tournament also being set in India, limiting their travel requirements.
Bailey added that Cummins’ last back scan was “awesome” and they were expecting good news from the next one as well.
The Aussies picked a spin heavy squad for the subcontinent, with Cooper Connolly, Matthew Kuhnemann, Adam Zampa and Glenn Maxwell all included.
However, they did not select a back-up wicketkeeper behind Josh Inglis, which could lead to an awkward situation if he gets injured.
Glenn Maxwell. Getty
Bailey pointed at Maxwell as the man who will likely take the gloves in that wildcard scenario.
“There’s the balance of those day-to-day injuries where a player might just be missing for one (game) versus a more serious injury,” Bailey said.
“(Maxwell would go) pretty well, I reckon. I’ve seen him do it. Does he practise it? No.
“He practises it as much as I saw MS Dhoni practise wicketkeeping. Which is never.
“But I think there’s a natural (aspect to it). He did it when he was younger. I don’t know if that counts now. Is it like riding a bike?”
If Cummins is unavailable, that will leave Hazlewood, Xavier Bartlett and Nathan Ellis as the pace options, alongside all-rounders Cameron Green and Marcus Stoinis.
Mitchell Starc retired from T20 internationals in 2025 to focus on the other two formats.