Is There Anything That Pat Cummins Can’t Do?

When Pat Cummins strode to the wicket in the second innings of the first Ashes Test this English summer, Australia still required 72 runs with only three wickets standing. Ben Stokes had somehow summoned the energy to bowl man of the match Usman Khawaja to put England on the brink of victory. The story of another Captain Fantastic effort was waiting to be written. Except that the hero wore green and gold. Cummins smashed 44 invaluable runs to steal the match and the momentum away from Bazball. He stood side by side with Stokes at the end of the game and rose in stature. The skipper had arrived big time.

“Cummins was always going to be a good captain. Overlooking for a moment the difficulties of being a fast-bowling skipper, he was easily the most inspirational player in the Australian team, and one blessed with cricketing common sense,” Ian Chappell wrote in a recent column for ESPNcricinfo. In 2023, the 30-year-old has led his side to the World Test Championship, retained the Ashes, won the World Cup and beaten Pakistan before the year is out. To cap off a wonderful year, he was sold to the Sunrisers Hyderabad for $2.48 million in the IPL, a record that lasted an hour before Mitchell Starc broke it. Cummins’ legacy will last longer than 60 minutes on and off the pitch.

The New South Wales star plays the game as competitively as anyone but does not resort to the kind of boorish pummelling that Australian teams of the past traded on. While Ricky Ponting relied on a rambunctious attitude and Michael Clarke’s endgame pushed Ashes relations to breaking point, Cummins talks about family values. The culture that led to the ball-tampering scandal of Sandpapergate in 2018 was the lowest point for a squad that had leaked toxic acid in its senior ranks. Australian cricket is still hard where the action is, but its coarse edges have been reduced under his leadership.

Even after the controversial Jonny Bairstow run out in the Ashes, where a moral storm was whipped up about the Spirit of Cricket, the fast bowler handled himself with detached aplomb. “Do you think that after Bairstow’s dismissal today, which was within the letter of the Law — no disputing that — but are we in danger of seeing Mankads or underarm bowling later on this series?”, asked an English journalist. Cummins didn’t rise to the bait, turning to humor instead. “Ah. I mean, depends how flat the wickets get. It might be an option to turn to,” he replied in true deadpan style.

Cummins disarms with his words and inspires with actions. When the knee-jerkers and doubters are at their loudest, he generally gets the big calls right. Putting Rohit Sharma’s India in to bat first in the World Cup final was about as close to the sun as it got in 2023. The public and much of the press box were genuinely shocked. He later admitted it was a last-minute call, but the side that went to work against 100,000 spectators had just won eight matches in a row. They were as thick as thieves, hunting in packs, just as they had done so in the field against South Africa in the semi-final. The snarl proved too much for an Indian side who tied themselves in nervous knots.

The Sydney paceman has just wrapped up the year in a perfect bow by taking ten wickets in the Boxing Day Test against Pakistan to seal a 2-0 series victory at Melbourne with one match to play. Cummins led from the front again to repel an opposition comeback in both innings. He removed players that were well set, including Abdullah Shafique and Shan Masood, but saved a peach of a delivery to castle Babar Azam too. It was almost as memorable as bowling Virat Kohli in Ahmedabad. The sound of silence has never been so shocking.

Cummins is prepared to get his name smeared by having views on issues that concern Mother Nature. He doesn’t live in a cricket bubble. Sportsmen who have deeply held opinions – see Gary Lineker – will always suffer a patronising backlash when they are perceived to be stepping outside their restricted lane. The Aussie skipper was behind the creation of Cricket for Climate to get solar power installed around thousands of local clubs. He has been vocal about environmental issues after the severity of bushfires at home and the impact global warming has on the specific vulnerability of cricket.

Cummins has been labelled ‘Captain Woke’ for his opinions, and even been accused of costing Cricket Australia a $40 million sponsorship deal with Alinta Energy, something which has been denied vehemently by all parties involved. It’s the cost of going against the grain, of refusing to play the safe sound bites of a one-dimensional sportsman. There’s a good boy, Pat. Know your place. Or else.

Sticking his head above the parapet on and off the field is not a problem, whatever the flak. In any case, winning trophies is the best defense a man can get.