🔗 Share this article

You could wonder whether Cricket Australia intentionally chooses to be opaque about player availability or simply has a deficiency in public relations, but once again, the health status of athletes and final team composition must be deduced from the 14-player squad announcement for the Brisbane match.

Normally, an unchanged squad would not be much news, but on this occasion it is, due to the anticipated changes involving both key players, neither of which has now eventuated.

The unexpected element is Cummins for his omission, with the regular captain and pace spearhead deep into his recovery from initial symptoms of a back injury. The sole official statement was a cursory line with the team announcement stating that Cummins is scheduled to go to Brisbane to continue his preparations.”

Insider reports support the view that everything is on track and his healing is proceeding well, with a likely addition to the side soon. In theory, he might still be added to the Brisbane squad in the next few days if deemed fit by staff. However, something the claims doesn’t add up.

Recalling when Cummins’ scans were cleared in last month, initiating the countdown on his return to play, all official statements from the player and timelines from CA indicated he would only narrowly miss the initial match and was set to practice at close to full intensity with the squad in Perth. Coach Andrew McDonald said, “He will be up and bowling in Perth, and fans will wonder why he’s not playing.”

Once Cummins got back to his home city following the team’s raucous two-day win, he was seen bowling in the New South Wales nets without any apparent limitations and, most notably, was using a pink Kookaburra ball, presumably as preparation for the day-night Test.

So, why the change of plans, more than four weeks since he indicated requiring a month to prepare his workload, and with six days until the first ball in Brisbane? Additionally, there are eight more days of rest between Brisbane and the third Test. If the latter is Cummins’ destination, it will be over two months since he resumed bowling.

This is acceptable: prognoses can change, medical staff can be conservative, athletes might take care. It’s just peculiar is that during the high-profile Ashes contest in the season, the board officials don’t appear to consider it necessary to provide updates about the captain’s fitness and availability or the changing nature of either.

And if caution is the watchword with Cummins, the reverse is true with the opener’s issue. He had muscle spasms in the first Test during two paltry fielding innings, keeping Australia’s usual opener from playing his role in the match and from making an impact when he did bat down the order. Though he may have improved, the fact he’d not experienced them before surely leaves some risk that they might recur in the heat of the next Test.

With Khawaja in the squad suggests he is due to resume opening the batting, even though his replacement scored a historic hundred in Perth. Khawaja wouldn’t be picked as a backup or to bat down the order. Once more, there is no official information about this, just the selection.

It isn’t necessary that sides must reveal a whole XI when picking their squad, and strategies may shift. However, certain decisions are clearer than others, and considering how Travis Head’s explosive performance captured public attention, it would cause no issue to confirm where those two players are due to bat. A bit of mystery in sports is a good thing, but manufacturing it out of the broadly obvious is unnecessary. If you’re in the business of winning over audiences, communication goes a long way.