{"id":231022,"date":"2025-10-21T23:05:18","date_gmt":"2025-10-21T23:05:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/231022\/"},"modified":"2025-10-21T23:05:18","modified_gmt":"2025-10-21T23:05:18","slug":"england-cricket-greats-cast-doubt-over-pat-cummins-ashes-hopes-as-back-injury-lingers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/231022\/","title":{"rendered":"England cricket greats cast doubt over Pat Cummins\u2019 Ashes hopes as back injury lingers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Luminaries of English cricket<\/a> have cast a dark shadow over the Ashes<\/a> hopes of Australia<\/a> captain Pat Cummins, who looks certain to miss at least the first Test of the series next month with a back stress injury.<\/p>\n

Cummins is in a race against time to be fit to lead the Aussies against England, if not in the first Test on November 21 at Perth, then the second on December 4 in Brisbane.<\/p>\n

Either way, he has a short runway to be ready for what could be the biggest series of his captaincy tenure.<\/p>\n

Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today \"Download<\/a><\/p>\n

Former England captain Michael Vaughan has his doubts.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s definitely not starting,\u201d he told the Stick To Cricket podcast.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd I\u2019ll ask the bowler (co-host Chris Woakes) \u2014 a stress fracture is not good, is it? You\u2019re not suddenly going to get a massage and (be) alright to play.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat is time. And if there\u2019s any slight hotspot, no chance.\u201d<\/p>\n

Woakes, who recently retired from international cricket after missing out on a spot in England\u2019s Ashes squad, said Cummins is walking a fine line if and when he plays.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think if he comes back into the Ashes and feels it at all, that\u2019ll be him done,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"TimeTime is running out for Aussie skipper Pat Cummins to prove his fitness for the opening Ashes Test. Credit: AAP<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s an element of needing some cricket beforehand and overs under your belt.<\/p>\n

\u201cTrying to build up from a stress fracture is tough.<\/p>\n

\u201cI also feel like going into an Ashes series, walking out there in the cauldron of a first Test match at Perth, you want to know you\u2019ve got a bit behind you, not nothing.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously there are players that need more than others, but he\u2019ll be working behind the scenes to make sure he\u2019s got enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alastair Cook added: \u201cIt\u2019s also not just the back, is it?<\/p>\n

\u201cSuddenly the first time you come back and bowl, everything hurts.\u201d<\/p>\n

Should Cummins fail to get up for the first Test, he will almost certainly be replaced by Scott Boland, whose record, particularly in Australia, is as good as anyone\u2019s in world cricket.<\/p>\n

But the omission of Cummins means more than just losing a wicket-taker, as Australian bowling great Glenn McGrath explained.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a big blow if Cummo\u2019s not playing in that first Test match,\u201d McGrath told The Fast Bowling Cartel.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cAnd it\u2019s not just his bowling, it\u2019s the attitude and the aura that the Australian bowling attack has. When you lose one of your main members, it has a positive impact on the other team.<\/p>\n

\u201cScotty Boland\u2019s got such a great record here in Australia, hopefully he can continue that.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Australia dealt crushing blow ahead of World Cup blockbuster<\/p>\n

1 min read<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Steve Smith makes unrecognisable change ahead of Ashes<\/p>\n

2 min read<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Luminaries of English cricket have cast a dark shadow over the Ashes hopes of Australia captain Pat Cummins,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":231023,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[564],"tags":[64,63,56117,740,1625,3863,588,85,33383],"class_list":["post-231022","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cricket","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australian-cricket-team","tag-cricket","tag-lifestyle","tag-sponsored-content","tag-sport","tag-sports","tag-the-ashes"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/231022","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=231022"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/231022\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/231023"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=231022"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=231022"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=231022"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}