Pace sensation Pat Cummins to miss the start of Australia's Test series against India with a bone stress heel injury
Pace sensation Pat Cummins to miss the start of Australia's Test series against India with a bone stress heel injury
Australia's teenage pace sensation Pat Cummins will likely miss the bulk of the home Test series against India with a bone stress heel injury, Cricket Australia said yesterday. The 18-year-old fast bowler suffered the injury during his man-of-the-match debut in last month's second Johannesburg Test against South Africa.
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Pat Cummins during the second Test vs South Africa at Wanderers
Stadium in Johannesburg.u00a0 Pic/AFP
It was initially thought to be bruising but new scans have revealed a bone stress problem and Cummins is unlikely to bowl again until early to mid-January, CA said. India begin their four Test series against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Boxing Day with further Tests in Sydney, Perth and Adelaide throughout January.
"As such we arranged for him to see a foot specialist and had further scans that have identified a bone component to his injury that was not evident on the original scans." Australian team physiotherapist Alex Kountouris said yesterday.
"We now believe that Patrick has a bone stress injury as well as the fat pad injury (soft tissue injury)."
Kountouris said Cummins was not likely to resume bowling until after the opening two Tests against India.
Cummins still has his sights on playing some role in the Test series.
He told reporters he did not have a date for his return to cricket but he aimed to play in the subsequent Twenty20 series against India and tri-nation one-day series also involving Sri Lanka, and possibly even some Test cricket. "Hopefully the ODI series and the T20," he said. "Maybe I'll even be back in the Test."
Steve Waugh warns Cummins over IPL
Former Australian captain, Steve Waugh yesterday warned Patrick Cummins about the lure of joining the lucrative Indian Premier League (IPL). "The priority has got to be playing for Australia, the baggy green is number one and everything else slots in underneath that," said Waugh.
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