Hazlewood, Cummins step up Ashes comebacks with intense net sessions in Sydney

Australia received encouraging news on Tuesday as Josh Hazlewood returned to the nets, stepping up his recovery from the hamstring injury that sidelined him for the opening Ashes Test in Perth. At the same time, Pat Cummins continued his own rehabilitation, practising with the pink ball as he works toward being available for the day-night Test at the Gabba following his recent back issue.

Both fast bowlers trained at Cricket Central in Sydney, where New South Wales were hosting Tasmania in their ongoing Sheffield Shield fixture.

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Hazlewood’s session centred around red-ball bowling, underlining Australia’s likely plan, a Gabba return appears improbable, with Adelaide shaping as the more realistic comeback venue for the pacer. This year’s Test in Adelaide will be played in the traditional daytime format.

Head coach Andrew McDonald reiterated on Monday that Hazlewood remains firmly in contention for later matches in the Ashes. “I know that he’ll be available at some point during the series. We’ve got a little bit of that early rehab to go through to formulate where he may plug into the series, but we expect him to take some part in the series,” he said.

Cummins, meanwhile, has been steadily increasing his workload, a trend that has impressed the selectors in the lead-up to the Perth Test. The management remains cautious, seeking full confidence that the captain can handle the demands of a five-day match, particularly with the possibility of shorter Tests early in the series.

Reflecting on Cummins’ latest session, McDonald noted, “It looked like a player that was nearing the completion of his rehabilitation. The intensity was there, the ball speed was there. There’s a lot of positives, but now it’s just really building that resilience within the soft tissue and making sure that we’re not putting him in harm’s way in terms of accelerating it too much.”

The opening stretch of the Ashes schedule works in Australia’s favour, with an extended 11-day break between the first and second Tests after the early finish in Perth. However, the calendar tightens significantly afterwards—only four days separate Adelaide from the Boxing Day Test, followed by another four before Sydney, assuming the matches go the distance.

With Brisbane’s pink-ball Test on the horizon, another brisk contest appears likely. Conditions under lights have proven lively in recent Shield cricket: on day three of Queensland’s clash against Victoria, 10 wickets fell during the night session, even though batting was more comfortable earlier in the match.

In that fixture, Queensland quick Xavier Bartlett starred with figures of 4 for 35 in Victoria’s second innings, complementing a career-best 72 with the bat. Bartlett, already making strides in white-ball formats, could be edging closer to an Ashes call-up, though the prospective returns of Cummins and Hazlewood may delay his opportunity.

Michael Neser, the reserve fast bowler in Perth, is also in consideration for the Gabba Test, particularly given his familiarity with the conditions. However, his two previous Test appearances both came with the pink ball in Adelaide during the 2021–22 and 2022–23 seasons.

Selectors are also monitoring Jhye Richardson’s progress as he works his way back from shoulder surgery. Richardson has already trained with the Test squad in Perth and bowled 20 overs for the CA XI against the England Lions, a valuable workload even though it did not yield a wicket. A return for Australia A in Brisbane appears likely.

Providing an update after that outing, Richardson said, “This game was a lot about physical preparation for me and making sure that we can get through. I’m sure there would have been a few people seeing a bit of ice on it after the bowling but that’s basically just maintenance. The shoulder’s feeling really good and it’s feeling better and better each bowl.

“It’s a decent hit out, the most overs I’ve bowled in a while and it’s all part of the process to building up to be ready for four and five-day cricket.”