Australia’s pace bowlers ready for a full summer with captain Pat Cummins saying “body felt really good”
Australian fast bowlers are feeling physically strong ahead of the summer’s seven Test matches against Pakistan, West Indies, and New Zealand, revealed coach Andrew McDonald and captain Pat Cummins. Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, and Mitchell Starc have played together in 28 Tests, and for the second time in their careers, they managed to play five Tests in a row together.
In previous tests, they had managed to play together through an 11-month Covid-induced gap before the Ashes series in 2021, but now, they have played the last two Tests of the Ashes series together in July 2023. The trio also played in the ODI World Cup, resting only in one match.
According to McDonald, the bowling lineup is set to be unchanged for the first Test against West Indies starting on January 17 in Adelaide and could play the next four against West Indies and New Zealand without a break.
In preparation, Australia’s selectors and support staff expected reserve quicks Scott Boland and Lance Morris to be ready for the Perth Test, but the main three bowlers didn’t need a break.
Cummins expressed surprise at how good he was feeling after the Sydney Test, saying, “Couldn’t be happier with how it’s all panned out.” Alex Malcolm is an associate editor at ESPNcricinfo
