Cummins eyeing bigger prizes than Ashes whitewash

Savouring the satisfaction of winning the Vodafone Ashes in fewer days than he spent in COVID quarantine after Australia's earlier triumph at the T20 World Cup, Pat Cummins insisted he had yet to consider the possibilities of subjecting England to another 5-0 shellacking.

But while that prospect must offer appeal to someone who missed the previous whitewashes in 2013-14 (when sidelined with injury) and 2006-07 (when playing for Glenbrook-Blaxland juniors aged 13), Cummins has lifted his gaze even further ahead.

Within an hour of overseeing England's rout for their lowest total in Australia in almost 120 years, Cummins was talking up the depth of talent at his disposal and how the team's evolution had them positioned for even bigger prizes in coming years.

There was a time when beating the old enemy on your home patch was seen as the pinnacle for Australia's Test teams, but so uncompetitive have England proved in Cummins' lifetime – winning just six of 38 matches here since May 1993, the most recent coming 11 years ago – it's understandable greater challenges now loom.

And the man who, but for a bout of bureaucracy in Adelaide would now be the only Australia Test captain to boast a 100 per cent winning record from his first three matches in charge, identified success on the sub-continent and lifting the World Test Championship trophy among them.

The first opportunity to tick those boxes comes next year when Australia is scheduled to play Test series in Pakistan (March) and Sri Lanka (June), with the second iteration of the Test Championship expected to coincide with Australia’s 2023 Ashes defence in the UK.

"It's what dreams are made of, the way we've played," Cummins said after England were crushed inside two days and a session, with surprise inclusion Scott Boland claiming 6-7 in the second innings of an inspired debut.

"Our bowlers have been fantastic in that I haven't really felt like there's been one session where it's got away from us.

"And I think outside of the results, there's so many other positives as well.

"We've been able to have a couple of debutants (Alex Carey and Michael Neser as well as Boland), and really build a strong squad of 15-odd players.

"It doesn't just feel like a three-nil victory, it really feels like we're setting ourselves up for the next few years as well.

"We've got seven players in the top 10 of the world at the moment – four batters (Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, David Warner and Travis Head) and three bowlers (Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc).

"And we probably haven't strung the performances over the last couple of years that we probably expected of ourselves.

"So I think this really consolidates that we are a really good, strong Test cricket side and it's a good sign for the next few years."

In truth, Cummins will gain a much clearer picture of how the revamped Test group is tracking after the next two offshore Test assignments rather than from the remaining Ashes fixtures in Sydney and Hobart.

The last time Australia toured Sri Lanka for Tests (in 2016) they were thumped 0-3 with no answer against the hosts' spinners, and their only 'away' victory against Pakistan in the past decade came at Lord's in 2010 when Pakistan played a 'home' series in the UK.

Furthermore, Australia have won just one Test in India (at Pune in 2017) since their most recent series win there in 2004 which is why men's team coach Justin Langer has identified the next campaign there (expected to be early 2023) as the holy grail for his team.

"The Test Championship is now a big thing, I absolutely want to be in that final in a couple of years' time," Cummins said of the prize that was won by New Zealand earlier this year after an over-rate indiscretion cost Australia a place in the play-off.

"We've also got a great opportunity to go over to a couple of sub-continent tours (and) that's a big challenge for any Test team.

"And I think winning at home - when Australian cricket has been at its best, the Test side wins at home and they have a really good record away.

"I just feel like it's building.

"We've got a great squad of 15-20 guys we can pick from and I think we've got options for anywhere in the world."

Brushing aside the Ashes thumping of an opponent all-too-easily brushed aside, Australia have good reason to eye the medium-term future with optimism.

Of the players to have wrested back the urn in less than 30 sessions of Test cricket, only Warner has reached the age of 35 and the backbone of the team – Cummins (28), Hazlewood (30), Starc (31), Smith (32) and spinner Nathan Lyon (34) – are essentially in their playing prime.

Throw in 'newbies' the likes of world number-one ranked batter Labuschagne (27), current Ashes leading runs scorer Head (28 tomorrow), opener Marcus Harris (29) and Carey (30) along with young talents Cameron Green (22) and Jhye Richardson (25) and it's likely the rump of this group will remain intact for the next couple of years, injury or incident notwithstanding.

Then there's the likes of 32-year-old Boland and 31-year-old Neser who served lengthy first-class apprenticeships before transitioning seamlessly into Test ranks, with leg spinner Mitchell Swepson looming as next in line to earn a Baggy Green call-up.

The 28-year-old Queenslander was a member of the Test squad that toured India in 2017 and been on the cusp of selection several times since then in addition to being part of the T20 World Cup-winning outfit.

But while acknowledging the historically spin-friendly surface at the SCG where the fourth Vodafone Ashes Test begins on January 5 might lend itself to Australia's fourth debutant in as many matches, Cummins noted injured duo Hazlewood (side) and Richardson (shin) were also likely to come under selection consideration.

"It's a luxury at the moment, we've got so many fit, available players who could step right in and we know they're going to do a great job," Cummins said.

"If Swepson debuted and then suddenly he was off to a sub-continent tour, you'd think that experience is probably a good thing.

"He's been absolutely brilliant around the squad, he was part of the T20 winning squad over in Dubai, he trains the house down, he bowls beautifully in Shield cricket and he'll definitely get a chance one day.

"And we know once he does, he'll take it and be ready to go.

"But we'll wait and see.

"It's an Ashes series where we're going to pick the best eleven that we think is going to win that Test match in Sydney."

It's a vastly different scenario to that confronting Australia 12 months ago.

That was when they crashed to an eight-wicket defeat against India at the MCG before an unchanged bowling attack claimed just three wickets on the final day victory push at Sydney, and then watched India chase down a victory target of 328 at the Gabba.

Cummins said there were additional external factors at play (likely COVID-related) last summer to explain why fresh bowling stocks weren't deployed as the India series progressed.

In addition, the greater workload now being shouldered by all-rounder Green meant it was possible Australia might have persisted with the same attack across the first three Ashes Tests had injuries and infection protocols not intervened.

But one stark difference has been the potency of Starc, who battled towards the end of the India series claiming three wickets at 97 runs apiece from 80 overs in the last two Tests whereas his return in the first three Ashes matches has been 14 at 19.64 from 100.1 overs.

Not only has the left-armer cut a swathe through England's flaky batting, he has scored more runs than any England batter other than Root and Dawid Malan with his 117 runs to date coming at the Labuschagne-esque average of 58.50.

And the fact he's snared many of his wickets with speed and skill rather than his mastery of the swinging ball – which was resolutely reluctant to wobble in Melbourne, where it was seam movement that dominated – augurs well for the upcoming Asia visits where swing is similarly rare.

Starc was by far Australia's most successful bowler on the 2016 Sri Lanka tour, with 24 wickets at 15.17 from his three Tests.

"For me, he's been just about the player of the series so far," Cummins said of his new-ball partner.

"I actually think this summer he's gone to a new level, he's found another gear.

"With ball that's not swinging he's taken wickets consistently, beaten the outside edge consistently.

"We know what a superstar he is, he'll go down as one of the all-time great Aussie bowlers.

"As a captain, I just feel so lucky I've got someone like him in my team ... you give him the ball and you just know he's going to create something.

"I couldn't be happier for him, just a brilliant three Test matches so far."

Vodafone Men's Ashes

Squads

Australia: Pat Cummins (c), Steve Smith (vc), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Marcus Harris, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Jhye Richardson, Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Swepson, David Warner

England: Joe Root (c), James Anderson, Jonathan Bairstow, Dom Bess, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Zak Crawley, Haseeb Hameed, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Dawid Malan, Craig Overton, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood

Schedule

First Test: Australia won by nine wickets

Second Test: Australia won by 275 runs

Third Test: Australia won by an innings and 14 runs

Fourth Test: January 5-9, SCG

Fifth Test: January 14-18, Blundstone Arena