Opinion: Appointing Pat Cummins as Test captain is a big risk taken by Cricket Australia

A new era has gone underway in Australian cricket with Pat Cummins taking over the reins of the Test team. The star fast bowler got the charge after Tim Paine stepped down from the role following an infamous ‘sexting’ scandal. With this episode occurring just days before Ashes 2021-22, Cricket Australia had the onus to appoint a new skipper in a short duration and they went with Pat Cummins.

Interestingly, Australia had the option of reinstating Steve Smith as captain but the selectors and officials went with the right-arm pacer, who served deputy to Paine during the wicketkeeper’s tenure at the helm. It must be noted that Cummins is Australia’s 47th Test captain and first-ever fast bowler in the full-time role. This shows how unpopular is the idea of pacers leading Test teams.

Meanwhile, Cummins, who’s the top-ranked Test bowler at the moment, started his tenure with the bang, taking a five-wicket haul in the first Ashes Test. His efforts proved to be fruitful as the Aussies defeated England by nine wickets at the Gabba in Brisbane. In the next game, however, Cummins was ruled out as he was found in close contact with a person, who tested positive for COVID-19.

Hence, Steve Smith, the now vice-captain, donned the skipper’s hat for the home team. The veteran batter has a great chance to showcase his potential and remind the world of his prowess as a leader. Meanwhile, three more Tests, after the second game, will be played in this edition of Ashes.

Cummins would be back as a leader and he’ll have a stern task at hands. After all, he belongs to an extremely rare breed of pacers leading a Test team. While Cricket Australia have smashed the stereotypes with their decision, Cummins’ appointment as the skipper also comes with a lot of risk.

Fast bowlers prone to injuries

One of the reasons why fast bowlers haven’t led Test teams more often is the massive workload they deal with. In comparison of players of other departments, pacers are more prone to injuries. Hamstring problems and back issues are something which a pacer needs to deal with throughout his career. Although Cummins has managed his body pretty well in recent years, he had fitness issues early in his career.

As he’s the captain now, Cummins will have the onus to lead Australia in most of the upcoming Tests. Hence, he will have to avoid injuries, which fast bowlers tend to sustain pretty easily. This is one of the many reasons that make the pacer’s appointment risky.

Can Pat Cummins control the game like a captain should?

With the workload of a fast bowler being massive, they are generally placed in regions like fine leg or third man, where the ball doesn’t travel very often. However, captains generally place themselves inside the circle to be involved in the game. The skipper is required to read the opposition batters’ strength and weakness.

Also, captains often chat with bowlers about strategies and plans in the middle of overs. It would be difficult for Cummins to do so, if he’s away from the pitch. Also, he’ll have to depend upon other fielders for DRS (Decision Review System) calls in that case. Hence, it would be interesting to see how he manages to ace this challenge.

Workload management would be a challenge

It must be noted that Cummins, alongside being the Test skipper, is also the vice-captain of Australia’s white-ball team. He also possesses an impressive record in white-ball cricket. As he’s now leading the Test team, the 28-year-old needs to emphasize more on workload management. He might have to give some white-ball assignments a miss to stay fresh for Test matches.

His participation in the Indian Premier League (IPL) is also a thing to see now. Notably, he fetched a whopping INR 15.5 crore from Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2020 auction. The pacer might not fetch such a hefty deal once again. However, teams would still be ready to spend a substantial amount to get the pacer on board.

With the competition offering such lucrative deals, skipping it is not easy. However, Cummins might have to do that to be fit and ready for national assignments. Notably, Cummins’ fellow pacer Mitchell Starc has also kept himself away from IPL to manage workload.

Can Pat Cummins always be a part of best Australian XI?

The Aussie skipper is the top-ranked Test bowler at the moment and his record is nothing short of phenomenal. However, with the workload on his shoulder increasing, the big question is whether the speedster can continue his dream run in the purest format or not? He certainly has to as Australia is a land of tearaway fast bowlers.

Hence, Cummins will always need to be top of the A-game. The challenge will become even sterner in Asian conditions. In fact, several tracks in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are rank-turners where teams field a three-man spin attack or sometimes even four. In that condition, Cummins need to be in good enough form to occupy the only place for a pacer in the playing XI.

Not to forget, the Aussies also have services of Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood, who are two of the finest pacers going around. Hence, pressure would mount of Cummins if he doesn’t deliver after keeping either of two in the benches.

Moreover, several captains, who are batters, wicketkeepers or even spinners, have played Test matches in the past with injuries, spasms or niggle. However, fast bowlers, especially who bowl at high speeds, might not to be able to do that as it requires effort from the entire body to bowl a fiery delivery. This is also a concern which Cummins might need to address.

How others have fared

In Imran Khan, Kapil Dev and Courtney Walsh, there have been some pacers, who have been exceptional in the captain’s role. However, the cricket calendar didn’t have T20I cricket or T20 leagues during these players’ playing days. If we look at the full-time fast-bowling captains in this century, only Shaun Pollock and Jason Holder have taken 100 wickets. In fact, Waqar Younis and Shaun Pollock were the only specialist pacers to have led Test teams in full-time role this century.

Most Test wickets by fast-bowling captains since 2000

Final Words!

So, captain Cummins has a tough road ahead and Cricket Australia will hope the pacer will embrace this challenge. His deputy Steve Smith has to play a huge part to manage the pacer’s workload. Cummins has even said that the vice-captain would be seen moving fields, making bowling changes at times. Hence, the pacer is pretty aware of what lies in front of him.

Also, Cummins will be 30 in less than a couple of years. The challenge would become even sterner then. Taking all these factors in consideration, it can be stated that Cricket Australia have taken a risk by giving the charge to Cummins. However, it’s not a gamble by any means as the pacer has abilities to thrive as a leader. The fact of the matter is he’ll have to defy several odds.