Pat Cummins has signaled his openness to continue serving as Australia's ODI captain beyond the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023. Cummins, who has led the team to seven consecutive victories in the tournament, expressed his interest in retaining the captaincy after the World Cup. His leadership has been instrumental in Australia's resurgence, positioning them as strong contenders for their sixth men's ODI title.
Cummins, who took over the captaincy from Aaron Finch last year, has been a steadying force for the team. Despite a shaky start in the 2023 Men's ODI World Cup, the Australians' impressive winning streak has bolstered Cummins' case to continue in the role.
While Cummins is willing to continue as ODI captain, he acknowledged that the final decision rests with coach Andrew McDonald and selection chief George Bailey. In addition to his leadership role, Cummins is also eyeing the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 auction, with an intention to participate in the T20 World Cup scheduled for next year.
"We've been pretty open, me and Andrew and George around different times in the year you're going to have different priorities. This is a bit of a one-off year where there's three or four big off-season events," Cummins was quoted by Cricket.com.au.
"After here the focus shifts back to Test cricket for a fair while. Probably like we've done in the past, at times white-ball cricket is going to have to shift (as a priority) so we fully focus on Test cricket. There's no end date in sight.
"I feel like I've been managed really well and looked after in a really, really busy year where you don't really want to give up any cricket," he added.
Pat Cummins has conveyed his eagerness to demonstrate that he deserves a spot in Australia's squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup in 2024. Playing in the Indian Premier League (IPL) is seen as a crucial aspect of this consideration.
Earlier this year, Cummins opted out of his A$1.34 million IPL contract with the Kolkata Knight Riders. At the time, he cited a packed schedule for 2023, including an India Test tour, the World Test Championship final, the Ashes, and the ongoing ODI World Cup.
Despite the earlier withdrawal, Cummins is now expressing his interest in participating in the IPL, viewing it as an opportunity to showcase his form and secure a place in the Australian squad for the T20 World Cup next year.
"I feel like I haven’t played a heap of T20 cricket and in some ways I feel like I haven’t played my best T20 cricket for a little while.
"I'm really excited, I'm probably going to go into the IPL auction for next year to try to get some games before that World Cup and push a case to not only make the side but get back to how I feel like I can bowl in T20 cricket," he said.
Following Aaron Finch's departure, the captaincy of the T20 side for Australia became vacant, and Mitch Marsh seems to be the frontrunner for the role. Marsh made a strong impression in the captaincy role during the recent series against South Africa, enhancing his chances of securing the leadership position for the T20 team.
"Hopefully playing in it. Captaining, I don't really know," Cummins said of the T20 World Cup. "Marshy did a fantastic job in South Africa, so we'll wait and see."
Australia will take on South Africa in the second semi-final on November 16 At Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
(With Agency Inputs)
