Ahead of the two-Test series in New Zealand, Australian Test captain Pat Cummins has opened up about his captaincy and bowling future. The 30-year-old fast bowler aspires to play for another 7-8 years, but is uncertain how long he will captain the Test side.
Pat Cummins took over as the captain ahead of the 2021/22 home Ashes after Tim Paine stepped down amid controversial circumstances. Cummins has been brilliant as Australia’s leader and recorded some historic, memorable wins.
Under Pat Cummins, Australia won a Test series in Pakistan, hammered England at home and retained the Ashes urn away, and won the WTC Final and World Cup 2023 final against India last year. Cummins, the bowler, too has been outstanding, leading from the front with his cricket.
Speaking to journalists on Wednesday in Wellington, Pat Cummins touched on his future as Australia’s skipper.
The Sydney Morning Herald quoted him as saying, “In a perfect world, if my form and body could keep up I’d like to be playing into my mid-30s, I’d doubt that I’ll be captaining that long. It’s good to have some freshness every x amount of time. If I’ve got seven or eight years, in a perfect world, of Test cricket I’d be very surprised if I’m captain for the whole time.”
Pat Cummins “mentally refreshed” after T20I series win
Ahead of the Test series, Australia thrashed New Zealand 3-0 in the T20Is, where they were led by Mitchell Marsh and Matthew Wade.
Cummins said that not captaining in T20Is and playing only as a bowler helped him get in the T20 groove after playing Tests and ODIs mostly in the last year.
“I really enjoyed it actually, with Marshy and Wadey taking up the reins I felt like I could just be a player. On the field, just worrying about your own skills solely, especially in a format that I haven’t played a lot for a while was good. Wadey and Marshy are both really good mates, so I’m there if they need me or want to lean or bounce an idea off me or whatever, but it was more of a mental refresh than anything else,” he asserted.
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