In a major roadblock for Australia, skipper Pat Cummins has officially been ruled out of the first Ashes Test against England after weeks of speculation. It is worth noting that Australia will take on England in the first Test of The Ashes 2025-26 at the Optus Stadium in Perth from November 21.
Cummins will be missing the first Test of the series due to a back injury, and in his absence, veteran batter Steve Smith will be leading Australia in the early stages of the marquee series. Notably, Australia will take on England in the second Test of the series from November 4, and that game could also prove to be a race against time for Cummins as well.
A lumbar bone stress in his lower back, Cummins’ possible exclusion from the early stages of the Ashes had been a heavily discussed topic. Additionally, it is interesting to note that Steve Smith has led Australia as Cummins’ understudy six times since 2021, leading the side to five wins in those six games as skipper.
Pat Cummins recently gave his take on his injury situation
A few weeks ago, Pat Cummins took centre stage and talked about his injury situation. He also gave his take on his timeline to make a return for the side and his availability in the Ashes 2025-26 as well.
"I'd say probably less likely than likely. But we've still got a bit of time. I'm running today and running kind of every second day, and each runs a little bit longer, and then we get into bowling prep next week. So I'm probably a couple of weeks away before actually putting on the spikes and bowling out on the turf. But it's been a good couple of weeks. Each session feels better and better,” Cummins said at a Fox Cricket season launch event in early October 2025.
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