Australia dealt brutal Ashes blow as Pat Cummins could miss 'entire series' vs England

Australia star Pat Cummins could potentially miss the ENTIRE Ashes series through injury. The Australian captain has been struggling with a back injury throughout the year and scans have revealed that the issue has still not healed.

The 32-year-old was sidelined for his nation’s white-ball series against South Africa and New Zealand and is also expected to miss the upcoming ODIs and T20s against India. Cummins is also anticipated to miss the Ashes opener in Perth late next month, while his issue could see him ruled out of the series entirely.

His absence would be a huge blow to Australia as they hope to retain the urn that they have held since 2018. Cummins is still working on his rehabilitation but he is not yet ready to resume bowling.

Cummins last played in the 3-0 clean sweep victory against West Indies in July. Should he fail to recover in time, Scott Boland is expected to take Cummins’ place in the pace attack alongside Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood.

Steve Smith is also the most likely candidate to claim the captaincy, having skippered his nation on several occasions since being stripped of the role for his part in the ball tampering scandal.

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Speaking about Cummins’ fitness last month, Australia coach Andrew McDonald said: “It’s not ideal … he is working through a program. It was a routine scan on the back of the West Indies [tour], he does have a lumbar bone stress issue there, so he will just work through what his return to play looks like,” McDonald said in September.

“We have got time. If it happened any closer [to the Ashes] then you would have to be making key decisions around what it all looks like. But we have got time, a lot more information to come, and as I said, we’re really hopeful that he will take a key part in the Ashes.”

England have already named their squad for the Ashes, which Australia are yet to do. They have however named their selection for their upcoming meetings with India.

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On their selection, Australia chair of selectors George Bailey said: “We have named a squad for the ODI series and first two games of the T20 series as there will be some management through the back end of the series as individuals prepare for the summer through Sheffield Shield cricket.

"The majority of the T20 squad will remain together as it's an important period in the build towards the World Cup next year. However, we are trying to strike a balance to ensure we simultaneously prepare certain individuals for the Test series ahead."

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