🔗 Share this article

One might speculate whether Cricket Australia intentionally chooses to be unclear about player availability or simply has a deficiency in communications, but yet again, the health status of athletes and final team composition must be deduced from the selection in the larger squad for the second Ashes Test.

Typically, an unchanged squad would not be much news, but this time it is, thanks to the anticipated changes involving Pat Cummins and Usman Khawaja, none of which has come to pass.

Cummins is the surprise for not being included, with the regular captain and fast-bowling leader progressing in rehabilitation from initial symptoms of a back injury. The sole official statement was a cursory line with the squad release stating that Cummins is scheduled to go to Brisbane to continue his preparations.”

Suggestions from within CA support the view that everything is on track and his recovery remains happily on track, with a probable return to the team in the near future. Theoretically, Cummins could even join the Test squad in coming days if deemed fit by staff. However, something the claims doesn’t add up.

Going back to when Cummins’ scans were cleared in last month, initiating the countdown on his buildup to match fitness, all official statements from the player and timelines from CA indicated he would only narrowly miss the first Test and was set to practice at nearly full tilt with the squad in Perth. The head coach remarked, “He will be up and bowling in Perth, and fans will wonder why he’s not playing.”

After returning to his home city following the team’s raucous two-day win, he was seen bowling in the state facilities without any visible restrictions and, importantly, was using a pink Kookaburra ball, what one would assume as readiness for the Brisbane day-night game.

So, why the change of plans, more than four weeks since he indicated requiring four weeks to build up bowling loads, and with less than a week to go in the Gabba? Not to mention, there are eight more days of rest between Brisbane and the third Test. Should he target Adelaide, it will be more than seven weeks since he started training again.

That in itself is fine: prognoses can change, medical staff can be conservative, athletes might take care. What’s strange is that during the high-profile Ashes contest in the season, the governing body’s representatives don’t appear to consider it necessary to provide any information about the captain’s fitness and availability or the changing nature of either.

And if caution is the watchword with Cummins, the opposite applies with the opener’s issue. He had spasms flare up in Perth during two paltry fielding innings, preventing the regular batsman from playing his role in both innings and from making an impact when he did bat down the order. Even if his symptoms have subsided, the fact he’d not experienced them before surely leaves some risk that they could return in the heat of the next Test.

His inclusion suggests he is set to return to the top order, even though Travis Head made a record-setting century in Perth. He wouldn’t be selected as a backup or to bat down the order. Once more, there is no official information about this, just the selection.

This doesn’t mean that teams should have to give a whole XI when picking their squad, and plans can change. But some plans are firmer than others, and given the way Head’s whirlwind captured public attention, it would cause no issue to clarify where both batsmen are slotted to play. A bit of mystery in sports is a positive, but creating it out of the broadly obvious is unnecessary. For those aiming of winning over audiences, communication goes a long way.