Pat Cummins insists Australia will NOT change their bowling approach to fighting Bazball as he claims Cameron Green will be key in stopping Ben Stokes’ high-flying England in this summer’s Ashes
- Pat Cummins is not worried about the threat from England’s Bazball
- The Australians are aiming to win their first Ashes series since 2001
- Cummins hopes Cameron Green can prove the difference for his side
Pat Cummins has insisted Australia will not change their bowling tactics to fight Bazball when the Ashes start in Edgbaston next week.
The Australians will experience English conditions for the first time on this tour when the World Test Championship final kicks off against India at The Oval on Wednesday, with Cummins leading an attack that will also include left arm Mitchell Starc, Scott Boland, all-rounder Cameron. Green and off spinner Nathan Lyon.
But he said he was not planning a major operation against an England side who have scored nearly five times since Ben Stokes took over as captain last year.
When asked if he’d thought about changing his method of attack, Cummins replied, “Not an exaggeration. Field placements may need to change a bit, but the areas where everyone bowls are generally our best chance of taking wickets.’
Cummins, who will play his 50th Test this week, admitted his team’s legacy may be defined by what happens this summer – first against India, then England.
Australia’s Pat Cummins insists he’s not worried about Bazball’s threat this summer
His team already fell short in their first major away game of the year, losing 2-1 in India. But that will be forgotten if he can become the first Australian captain to win in England since Steve Waugh in 2001.
“Like it or not, in these big series you look back at eras of cricket teams and judge their achievements,” he said. “No doubt this will be the last Ashes away tour for some of the guys. That’s a great opportunity for us.’
While England will try to rest and rotate their group of fast bowlers over five Ashes Tests, Cummins intends to play every game – and he may be helped by the fact that England’s score means they have more having hit over 90 overs, the equivalent of a day, just three times in 13 Bazball Tests.
Also in his favor is the presence of the 6ft 6in Green, who scored his maiden Test century against India in Ahmedabad in March and offers pace and bounce with the ball.
The Australian captain hopes to stop Ben Stokes’ high-flying England in the Ashes
Cummins insists Cameron Green can play a big role in the series’ outcome
“Greeny is a real luxury to have a captain,” Cummins said. “He’s a fifth bowling option to bowl as many overs as we need, and we’ve seen what Ben Stokes has done with England. Having that important all-rounder in your top six can sometimes make a big difference. He keeps growing and growing.’
Australia will also feature the wisdom of Andy Flower, who coached England to three successive Ashes victories between 2009 and 2013, and will dive in and out of the dressing room over the course of the summer.
And Cummins urged David Warner, who announced last week he would retire from Test cricket in January, to launch the attack on the Indian bowlers as he seeks to secure his Ashes spot at the top of the league table.
“When Davey is at his best, he’s an aggressive, scary proposition. So that’s what we’d like to see. If he does that, he’s going to score points – even if it’s not this match, it’ll be the next one.’
For India, this week is a chance to win the first global ICC event since the 50-over Champions Trophy in 2013 – and to put behind them their defeat to New Zealand in the first WTC final two years ago in Southampton.
It was a subject greeted with a certain irritability by Indian captain Rohit Sharma.
“We know what we won and what we didn’t win,” he said. “It’s no use thinking about it over and over again. When we were in Australia for the T20 World Cup last year, we got the same question and I answered the same question.’