Pat Cummins has been ruled out of the second test against West Indies starting at Adelaide Oval. For this match, the vice-captain Steve Smith will take the charge in the absence of this bowler.
At the same time, Scott Boland will replace Cummins in the Australian Playing XI. Australia played amazingly in the first test at Perth where they clinched a victory of 164 runs against the West Indies, leading the series 1-0.
While talking about the fitness of Pat Cummins, team management said, “Team medical staff commenced Cummins’ recovery in Adelaide but selectors deemed there was not sufficient time for the fast bowler to be fully fit for the match.”
However, the team is expecting recovery during the 1st test against South Africa set to start in Brisbane in the upcoming week.
Talking about the situation of Pat Cummins, Steve Smith said, “I don’t think he was too far away (from playing) and he will continue to build this week.”
He further added, “But with what’s coming up, a big series against South Africa and then Tests in India, there’s a lot of cricket. From a strategic point of view, to have the possibility of (Cummins) going down and putting the load through the other quicks having bowled some overs at the end of the Perth Test, it was a risky decision to continue going.”
