Pat Cummins hopes to have another closely-fought Test series vs India

Australia Test captain Pat Cummins is hoping for a closely-fought Test series against India in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy. However, Team India are all set to travel Down Under to play a five-match Test series as well. And, India and Australia are favourites for the World Test Championship finals as well.

A closely fought Test series likely to take place in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy

Speaking to Sydney Morning Herald, Cummins said that the last Test series in 2020-21 reached to the final session of the last Test match at Gabba as well. In that series, Rishabh Pant played a stunning knock to help India register a famous series win under the captaincy of Ajinkya Rahane. Moreover, India have won the last two away tours of Australia and they have not let Australia win the BGT trophy in the last decade too.

“The couple of home series I’ve played against India there’s always an element of attrition to them. The last series came down to the last session at the Gabba on the last day of the last Test match. That’s a good thing to keep in mind; it is a long series, and it might be tightly held until the last game, so you’ve got to manage your resources throughout,” Cummins said.

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Pat Cummins opens up on Cameron Green's Injury

The captain also shared his views on fast bowling allrounder Cameron Green's injury. Green has sidelined from the England white-ball series due to a stress fracture in the back, which could potentially keep him out for a long time as well. However, Cummins also said that he was really sympathetic of Green's injury but also reminded that fast bowling comes with injuries as well.

“Really sympathetic. We want him bowling, Cam wants to be bowling, and he has a long career ahead of him. So it’s about trying to place Cam the cricketer in the best position he can be to have the career that he’s hoping for. He’s young, so I’m sure he’ll be right in the long run," Cummins said. “Bowling and trying to bowl fast is unfortunately fraught with injuries. In some ways, the hardest thing is missing cricket and seeing games go by that you could have been part of, but also it can be a pretty lonely way back."

Notably, Pat Cummins himself was away from Tests for six years between his first and second Test match due to multiple back injuries as well. And, now he has given priority to his body and takes rest to keep himself fresh in the longer run. 

However, the first Test match of the Border Gavaskar Trophy will start on November 22.

However, SunRisers Hyderabad captain Pat Cummins also reacted to the new Indian Premier League rules. He was asked about the new rule of IPL where the board will ban players for 2 years who make themselves unavailable after their selection in the auction. Cummins also said that it won't affect him, since he has not pulled out of an auction before as well.

"I’ll work out in the next little bit what this season looks like. There’s a bit of a tweak in the rules, but I don’t know whether that would have affected me in the past, I’ve never pulled out after the auction. But it is one more factor to consider with the IPL. Test cricket is the absolute No. 1 priority, World Cups are right up there, and then I think you use them as your tent poles and work out what else makes sense around that," Pat Cummins concluded.