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Australian Test captain Pat Cummins has taken a two months break from cricket and is spending some quality time with his family in Sydney. During this period, he is managing his workload and preparing for the highly anticipated Border-Gavaskar Trophy against India later this year.
Cummins, who has been playing non-stop cricket for the past 18 months, will miss Australia’s upcoming limited-overs tour of the UK, which includes white-ball series against Scotland and England.
“I’ve basically been bowling non-stop since the 2023 ICC World Test Championship final”
In an interview with Fox Sports, Cummins emphasized the importance of rest and recovery in maintaining peak performance. “Everyone that comes back after a break is a little bit fresher, you never regret it,” he said. Cummins added, “I’ve basically been bowling non-stop since the 2023 ICC World Test Championship final, nearly 18 months ago. This gives me a good seven or eight weeks completely off bowling so the body can recover.”
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Hectic schedule and injury recovery
Cummins has had a packed schedule across formats, leading Australia to the 2023 WTC title and the ODI World Cup triumph. He then featured in Tests against Pakistan, West Indies and New Zealand, the IPL, T20 World Cup and the recently concluded Major League Cricket (MLC) in the US. The 31-year-old also had to deal with a wrist fracture towards the end of the Ashes campaign in England.
During his break, Cummins plans to focus on gym work, running, and rehab exercises that are difficult to fit into a regular season. “I’m very sore today after a week of gym. Hamstrings, even ankles, kind of build up over months of bowling,” he said. “I’ll be doing lots of gym, some running, a lot of rehab exercise that you just can’t really fit in the middle of the season.”
Determination to win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy
The upcoming Border-Gavaskar series will feature five Test matches in Australia, with the hosts looking to end India’s dominance in recent years. India defeated Australia 2-1 in a thrilling four-match series at home earlier this year and have not lost a Test series to the Aussies since 2014/15. “It’s the trophy I haven’t won before…this is the one trophy a lot of our group haven’t ticked off,” Cummins said, expressing his determination to lead Australia to victory.
Despite his break, Cummins has no plans to retire from T20 cricket and hopes to contribute to Australia’s pursuit of an elusive gold at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, where cricket will make its debut. As he prepares for the challenges ahead, Cummins’ decision to prioritize rest and recovery underscores the importance of managing workloads in the modern era of cricket.
