Image Credit- CA
After an incredible year of international cricket,
Australia’s fast bowlers seem set to play a complete summer of seven Test
matches against West Indies, Pakistan, and New Zealand. Both captain Pat
Cummins and coach Andrew McDonald have been taken aback by how strong all three
players feel physically.
It is only the second time in their careers that the
fast-bowling trio of Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, and Mitchell Starc have managed
to play five Tests in a row together. Together, they have played 28 Tests.
The last time was made possible by an 11-month break
caused by COVID-19 between the fourth and the fifth Tests, which followed the
completion of the four-match home Test series against India in December 2020
and January 2021, and the December 2021 Ashes Test.
Nevertheless, during this period, they were able to
play the final two Tests of the Ashes series in July 2023, with each of the
three players participating in at least four Tests. Additionally, Cummins and
Starc played in the World Test Championship final.
After that, they participated in 10 of the 11 ODI
World Cup matches together. Starc rested for one match before the semifinals
and continued to play without alteration during the Pakistan series. In the
midst of all the speculation over David Warner’s potential replacement,
McDonald said they will play the first four Test matches against the West
Indies and New Zealand without a break. The first Test against the West Indies
is scheduled to begin in Adelaide on January 17 and will feature an unchanged
trio.
“There’s nothing to indicate they’ll need a
rest,” McDonald said after the four-day win in Sydney. “They’ve got a
little bit of a gap to the West Indies Test match. I could see pretty much an
unchanged bowling line-up for Adelaide.
“It’s probably something we’ve noticed, they’ve
probably got better across the [Pakistan] series. In particular, Josh Hazlewood
and Pat Cummins. And Mitch Starc, I think his ball speed in this game was at
its highest.”
Cummins said before the Sydney Test that he hoped all
three could play the full set of seven Tests across the summer. After the win
in Sydney, where he was named player of the series, he was surprised at how
good he was feeling.
“I felt great, body felt really good,”
Cummins said. “There are times you bowl well and wickets don’t really
follow that. Really happy with how it’s all going. Felt fresh, bowled where I
wanted to, going through the gears.