Australian captain Pat Cummins left everyone guessing on the eve of the second Ashes Test, leaving the door ajar for a dramatic comeback in Brisbane.
Cummins missed his side’s win in Perth with a back injury and was subsequently left out of the squad for the day/near at the Gabba.
But he has continued to train with his teammates and although Cummins was never officially added to their squad, Australia were decidedly cagey about whether he could still make the XI.
Stand-in skipper Steve Smith appeared at the captain’s pre-match press conference but gave no guarantees he would lead the side out.
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Pat Cummins missed Australia’s win in Perth with a back injury
(Robbie Stephenson/PA)
To wait
He hinted that the team would be announced after a final assessment of the field, but after a long look that also involved Cummins and head coach Andrew McDonald, it was confirmed that Australia would not name their team until the toss.
That will take place at 2pm local time, or 3.30am in the UK.
“There’s a whole lot of things on the table. We’ll wait and see how the wicket looks later and from there we’ll decide on a playing XI,” Smith said.
“(Cummins) looks pretty good, he’s been put in the net. Obviously the games are certainly of different intensity, but he’s tracking nicely and he knows his body well. We’ll wait and see.”
Brendan Doggett, who took five wickets on debut last time out, would be most likely to make way if the skipper returns, although there has been some speculation about spinner Nathan Lyon’s role.
Yorkshire-born Josh Inglis is expected to beat Beau Webster in a middle-order recall, with Usman Khawaja out injured and Travis Head set to open again after a match-winning century as a stand-in in Perth.
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