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Australia's chief selector the selector has stated that pace spearhead Cummins will play a "major part" in the upcoming England-Australia contest.

Rumors had circulated that the veteran bowler might miss the series due to a stress fracture in his back that was still troubling him.

Earlier indications from the squad suggested no final decision had been made regarding Cummins' participation, with the extended contest scheduled to begin on November 21 in Perth.

The selector shared that Cummins is "building up" and remained hopeful about his chances of taking part.

"We're aware that the clock is ticking and multiple considerations involved, not just the back issue, but further aspects," Bailey remarked.

"The outlook is good. There's strong faith that he's going to play a major part. Ideally it's the first Test. If not, we'll reassess."

Injury History

He was sidelined Australia's limited-overs series against New Zealand and India recently after medical tests showed a lumbar bone stress.

There is a track record of recurring issues, with flare-ups in several earlier campaigns causing him to miss multiple domestic campaigns in four years.

He emphasized he would be ""aggressive" and "take risks" in his rehabilitation process to ensure his availability for the series.

He mentioned that he did not know if he had started his bowling workouts as part of his recovery but acknowledged it was "becoming urgent" for him to recover fully for the initial match.

Contingency Plans

In case of absence, former captain Steve Smith will lead the side.

Versatile player Green was recently pulled out from the ODI lineup for their ODI contests against India as a preventive step because of soreness in his side.

He labeled it as a "slight concern and confirmed that Green will play in the domestic first-class competition, so will be "ideally positioned to deliver overs."

"Extensive planning has gone into developing the strategy for him to participate for the first Test as an all-rounder," he elaborated.

"Originally, he'd only feature in the starting games regardless. His aggressive style the bat in limited-overs, should it hinder progress for 24 more hours, we just made the decision to take a cautious route."

Series Schedule

The Ashes: Australia v England

Spanning from late 2025 to early 2026