McDonald hopeful as Cummins races against time for Ashes opener

Australia head coach Andrew McDonald admitted that the clock is ticking for the skipper captain Pat Cummins to prove his fitness for the upcoming five-Test Ashes series against England, starting November 21 in Perth.

Cummins, sidelined since July with a back injury, only resumed running earlier this month, just weeks before the first Test begins. McDonald admitted the skipper is racing against time to return to bowling but remained hopeful of a comeback if Cummins could resume training within the next 10 days.

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“Myself and Patty have spoken about that type of timeframe,” McDonald said. “Or else you start to bring in other risk factors. A: You’re not skill ready or B: Soft tissue injuries then become a real risk. And if you were to do a soft tissue injury early in a series like the Ashes, then it’s a long way back from where he’s been. So we’ll be mindful of all those risk factors.”

If Cummins fails to recover in time for the Perth Test, Steve Smith could take charge as captain, with Scott Boland the likely replacement alongside Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood.

However, McDonald revealed that the skipper’s condition had improved recently.

“There’s some positive signs speaking to Patty over the last few days. He’s a lot more optimistic. Those who have been through this type of injury (say) these things ebb and flow,” McDonald noted.

“A couple of weeks ago, did he think he had a chance (to play in Perth)? Potentially not, he was a little bit sore. Then you flip it forward two weeks and there’s a lot more positivity. We’ve still got a little bit to go.

One of the benefits with Patty is that he has had the ability to prepare for Test matches off shortened preparations. So if it was to be shrunken down, we’d be very confident that he would still be able to perform in the first Test.

But the reality is, we’re starting to get tight in terms of the times. We’re still optimistic, hopeful, but this time next week, I think we’ll be in a position to get better gauge on where he’s at,” he further stated.

After the first Test in Perth, the action moves to Brisbane for the second Test, starting December 4, while the third Test will be played at Adelaide from December 17, followed by the traditional Boxing Day Test at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground. The fifth and final Test will be held in the new year in Sydney, starting January 3.