No Rest For Cummins, Hazlewood And Starc For Upcoming Australian Test Summer
Cummins, Starc and Hazlewood will play WI & NZ Tests (Twitter)
Australia are delighted they won't have to stick to 'Plan A' and rest any of their Big 3 quicks Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc for the looming Tests of the season against West Indies and New Zealand.
The reigning World Test Championship (WTC) winners had initially decided to put contingency plans in place and bring in backup options Scott Boland and Lance Morris if required to rest one or two of their premier quicks in an elongated summer featuring seven Tests in nine weeks, including the just-concluded Test series versus Pakistan.
The plan was made considering the close proximity of the start of the home summer in mid-December to the long campaign at the ICC World Cup 2023 where Starc, Cummins and Hazlewood played all the games.
However, with all three Tests in Perth, Melbourne and Sydney ending inside four days and the famed trio not taking an excessive load on their legs, the team management is happy they won't have to rest and rotate them through the coming two series.
No Rest For Famed Trio During WI & NZ Tests
"There's nothing to indicate they'll need a rest. They've got a little bit of a gap to the West Indies Test match. I could see pretty much an unchanged bowling line-up for Adelaide," coach Andrew McDonald was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.
"It's probably something we've noticed, they've probably got better across the [Pakistan] series. In particular, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins. And Mitch Starc, I think his ball speed in this game was at its highest."
Cummins had said finding just rewards for the quality of work put in on the pitch has also played its part in dropping the idea of resting their fast-bowling men. The skipper found them in abundance, taking 19 scalps in six innings at a measly average of 12 with three consecutive fifers.
"I felt great, body felt really good. There are times you bowl well and wickets don't really follow that. Really happy with how it's all going. Felt fresh, bowled where I wanted to, going through the gears," he said.
"By the end of the World Cup, bowlers are always carrying a few niggles, I felt a little bit sore and beaten up but after a few weeks rest I was a bit surprised how I turned up in Perth, I felt really good."
After thrashing Pakistan 3-0, Australia are scheduled to play against the West Indies in a two-match Test series, which will be followed by the ODIs and the T20I series against the Windies side.
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