Australia’s Test and ODI captain Pat Cummins’ chances of playing in the 2026 edition of ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka are “quite grey at the moment” as he battles a back stress issue that
has affected his participation in the ongoing Ashes series against England.
Cummins returned to play the third Ashes Test in Adelaide after missing the opening two matches, picking up six wickets to help Australia clinch the series 3-0.
However, he will take no further part in the series, and his participation in the T20 World Cup is also uncertain.
“Looking forward to the (T20) World Cup, whether he will be there or not, I can’t really say. It’s quite grey at the moment. We’re hopeful,” head coach Andrew McDonald was quoted as saying by ESPN Cricinfo.
The fast bowler was diagnosed with a lumbar stress reaction during Australia’s tour of the West Indies in July. He underwent rehabilitation before being cleared for a carefully managed return in Adelaide.
“He’s pulled up fine. He won’t play any part in the rest of the series and that was a discussion that we had a long time out around his return,” McDonald said.
“We were taking on some risk and people that reported on that would understand the risk associated with that rebuild. We’ve now won the series and that was the goal.
“So, to position him for further risk and jeopardise him long-term is not something that we want to do, and Pat’s really comfortable with that,” he added.
The T20 World Cup is scheduled to begin on February 7 across India and Sri Lanka, with the summit clash set for March 8.
Australia’s first match is on February 11 against Ireland in Colombo. Although Cummins captains the Test and ODI teams, all-rounder Mitch Marsh leads Australia in the shortest format.
