Australia's Test captain, Pat Cummins, has confessed there were moments during his arduous recovery from a back injury when he genuinely did not know if he would be fit to feature in this summer's Ashes series against England.
The Road to Recovery: Doubt and Determination
The 32-year-old fast bowler missed the opening two Tests in Perth and Brisbane but is now confirmed to make his comeback in the crucial third Test at the Adelaide Oval. He will be joined by spinner Nathan Lyon, with Michael Neser and Brendan Doggett making way.
Cummins first felt the onset of 'lumbar bone stress' during Australia's third Test against the West Indies in July, an issue that progressively deteriorated. Following scans after the winter tour, he was forced into a 16-week complete break from bowling to allow the bones in his back to heal properly.
"I got asked a million times in the off-season: 'Are you going to play?'" Cummins told reporters. "I genuinely didn't know because as long as everything tracked well, I'd be in this position."
An Aggressive Ashes Countdown
While standard recovery from such stress fractures takes three to four months, the looming Ashes series prompted a radically accelerated plan. Cummins embarked on an 'aggressive' rehabilitation programme, compressing his return to bowling fitness into just six or seven weeks.
He revealed a return for the Gabba Test in Brisbane was a possibility, but he would have been severely restricted. "If I played in Brisbane, I would have probably been on limited overs, but this week it's go and play like any other Test match," he stated.
This is not the first time Cummins has battled back problems; his career has been punctuated by recurring back stress fractures in 2012, 2013, and 2015. Reflecting on the initial injury in Jamaica, he said, "I was feeling a little bit sore. I got an initial scan, which showed something potentially brewing... Four weeks later, I had another scan and it just looked a bit more serious."
Returning to a Winning Side
Cummins emphasised that caution was paramount throughout his rehab. "We also knew that you have got to tread lightly around some of these injuries, and if there was a flare-up or a setback, I wouldn't have played. We wouldn't have risked it," he explained. "Luckily, things have played out pretty well."
He returns to a team in a commanding position, leading the series 2-0 under the interim captaincy of Steve Smith. A victory in Adelaide would secure the Ashes urn for Australia. Cummins was full of praise for the team's performance in his absence.
"The boys have been fantastic. Steve has led brilliantly, so I feel like I'm coming into a pretty settled side," he said. "It couldn't have gone any better, really, from our point of view... It gives you a lot of confidence going into a game when you look around the room and you know someone's going to help you out, even if you're not at your best."
While watching from the sidelines was a novel experience, Cummins found the series "captivating" and is now "itching to get out there" as the action moves to Adelaide, where England have won twice and drawn once in the last ten encounters.
