Team India are not the only side fretting over he fitness of their star bowler Jasprit Bumrah, ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 which gets underway on February 19 in Karachi. Australia are the current world champions when it comes to ODI cricket and may well have to play in this ICC tournament without their talismanic captain and fast bowler Pat Cummins.
Cummins is ‘highly unlikely’ to feature in the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy due to an ankle injury, with former skipper Steve Smith and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) batter Travis Head emerging as the frontrunners for the captaincy role. In addition to Cummins, pacer Josh Hazlewood is also racing against time to regain fitness, coach Andrew McDonald revealed on Wednesday in Galle.
Cummins had already missed the Test tour of Sri Lanka for the birth of his second child but has also been managing an ankle issue aggravated by his heavy workload in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT). Australia’s ODI players not involved in the Test series are scheduled to depart for Sri Lanka on Thursday. However, McDonald confirmed on Wednesday that Cummins is unlikely to be among them.
“Pat hasn’t resumed any kind of bowling, so he’s heavily unlikely to make it, which means we’ll need a captain,” McDonald was quoted as saying by SEN Radio.
“Steve Smith and Travis Head are the two options we’ve been discussing as we build our Champions Trophy squad, alongside Pat back home. One of them will take up the leadership role.
“Steve has done an excellent job in the (first) Test match and has experience leading in ODIs as well. So, it’s between those two.”
PAT CUMMINS SET TO MISS 2025 CHAMPIONS TROPHY. – Steven Smith or Travis Head could lead Australia. (Espncricinfo). pic.twitter.com/E1Zi8dpwca
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) February 5, 2025
Cummins was retained by SRH for Rs 18 crore and is expected the lead the side in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 while his teammate Head was retained by the Kavya Maran-owned franchise for Rs 12 crore ahead of the mega auction last year.
McDonald also acknowledged Hazlewood’s injury struggles. “Patty’s absence is a big blow, and Josh is also battling at the moment. We’ll have more medical updates in the coming days to confirm the squad,” the Australian coach said.
Josh Hazlewood has an injured hip
Hazlewood is dealing with a hip issue after recovering from side and calf injuries that kept him out of three Tests against India and the Sri Lanka series. Meanwhile, Mitchell Marsh has already been ruled out of the Champions Trophy with a back injury. Although he is unlikely to play any further domestic cricket this season, there remains a chance he could feature in the IPL 2025 for Rishabh Pant’s Lucknow Super Giants (LSG).
Australia has yet to name Marsh’s replacement for the Champions Trophy. Following the recent Test win in Galle, McDonald indicated that Beau Webster is a strong contender for an ODI call-up despite having no international experience in the format. Australia is keen to bolster its squad with a seam-bowling allrounder, especially with Aaron Hardie and Marcus Stoinis carrying injury concerns. Hardie has only recently resumed bowling after a quad injury, while Stoinis experienced hamstring tightness in the SA20 2025 and has not bowled in his recent matches for Durban’s Super Giants.
With Cummins and Hazlewood unavailable, Sean Abbott is expected to re-enter the ODI setup after missing out on the final Champions Trophy squad due to recent form. Spencer Johnson is also in contention, having been set to travel to Sri Lanka as cover.
Additionally, leg-spinner Tanveer Sangha has been sent to Sri Lanka for development purposes ahead of the second Test. However, McDonald suggested Sangha could feature in the two ODIs in Colombo before the squad departs for the Champions Trophy. He is expected to serve as a reserve player in Pakistan, as he did for the 2023 ODI World Cup in India, with Adam Zampa being the only specialist spinner in the 15-man squad.
About The Author
