The ongoing Ashes 2023 has been a mixed bag for Australia, and their captain, Pat Cummins, has been facing doubts and criticism over his captaincy due to the team’s inconsistent performances. The tour started on a high note for Australia, winning the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023 final against India and the first two matches versus England. However, their form took a dip, as they lost the third test at Old Trafford and narrowly escaped defeat in the fourth test at Manchester, thanks to rain.
In the Manchester Test, Australia struggled in their first innings, folding for 317, while England piled on a massive total of 592, driven by Zak Crawley’s outstanding 189 and valuable contributions from Jonny Bairstow (99*), Joe Root (84), Harry Brook (61), Moeen Ali (54), and Ben Stokes (51*). This left Australia trailing by a significant first-innings margin of 275 runs. Australia’s second innings saw them struggling at 214/5, but they were aided by incessant rainfall throughout the final day, which led to a draw.
Australia’s escape from a near-certain defeat in Manchester and the subsequent retention of the Ashes did not come without criticism of Cummins’ tactics as captain. The tourists found themselves in a difficult position after conceding a massive 275-run lead to England in the first innings.
In the aftermath of the match, several former Australian cricketers voiced their concerns over the 30-year-old tactics and field placings, suggesting that they played a role in England’s dominant position. The criticism likely focused on decisions made during England’s batting innings, which allowed them to pile on a mammoth total of 592 runs.
Ahead of the final Ashes Test, embracing a resilient attitude, the former number one Test bowler acknowledges that people are entitled to their views, but pleasing everyone is not his responsibility. Cummins also added saying that he has developed a thick skin over the years and hence, nothing affects him anymore.
“I honestly haven’t read anything. A few things have come across my desk from the boys having a laugh. I’ve been in this job two years now, and you learn pretty quickly that you’ve got to have a thick skin,” the Aussie red-ball skipper was quoted as saying by Sydney Morning Herald
“It’s such a great bunch of players and staff here that we all know what everyone is about and how we are going to go about it, and for me, that’s more important than anything else. I’m not going to please everyone and everyone’s got opinions, but they aren’t facts, they’re opinions,” the Westmead-born cricketer further added.
Cummins has been nothing short of exceptional as a leader so far. With an impressive track record of 11 wins in Tests and only four losses under his captaincy, Australia remains undefeated in series under his guidance. The Australian speedster’s confidence is soaring and he believes that he is constantly improving with each match and has a lot left in him.
“I feel like with each game I’m getting better. There’s a fair bit more left in me. The biggest asset we have is the experience of the group and that’s not going to be around forever. We’re very individualized in how we let everyone be themselves and do it their way. “Some of that’s down to the fact that we’ve got guys that have played 100 Test matches, or 15 years of first-class cricket. If there’s new guys in, maybe you need to shift that (approach) a little bit. It’s exciting, that’s what I like about the job,” Cummins concluded.
