Not IPL, my priority is Test cricket for Australia, says SRH captain Pat Cummins

SunRisers Hyderabad captain Pat Cummins led the franchise to their second playoff finish in three seasons. Under Cummins, SRH rebranded themselves as T20 cricket and also forced the entire Indian Premier League to adapt to a more aggressive style of play.

However, ahead of their last league match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Cummins again hinted that the Indian Premier League and subsequently SRH is not the top priority in his career and will not be in the near future.

Speaking to ESPNcricinfo at a promotional event ahead of their final home game of the season, Cummins made it clear that Australian cricket, particularly Test cricket, will remain his priority over the next 18 months. He also explained that this was the reason why he took an extended break during this IPL season to recover from his injury.

Cummins missed seven matches, almost half of the IPL season for SRH, while recovering from a lower back injury suffered midway through last year. He played one Ashes Test match in December and January, after which he took another extended period of rest.

With a busy schedule of Tests and ODIs ahead of him, Cummins said he does not want to miss a single Test match in the near future.

“Nothing has changed for me, my priority is Australian cricket, No. 1, especially Test cricket. As a Test captain, I never want to miss any Test cricket and be available for as many Australian games as I can,” Cummins said.

So where do the IPL and SRH figure in the plans of one of the best leaders of his generation? In the holiday window, according to Cummins.

“The IPL is good in that it normally fits into our holiday break so that’s obvious, but they’re probably my main focus and I don’t see that changing at all for me over the next few years,” he said.

CUMMINS’ ALLEYS FITNESS WORRIES

Cummins’ fitness and workload concerns also meant he declined to take over the T20I captaincy for Australia despite several requests following Aaron Finch’s retirement. Mitchell Marsh was eventually named captain, despite injury concerns that kept him out of the bowling for more than two years.

Speaking about his own fitness issues, Cummins said the extended break was designed to allow his body to feel fully refreshed. The SRH captain added that the injury has now completely healed and that he is feeling the best he has been in six or seven years.

“Actually, the last four months I feel really fresh. I haven’t played that much. So physically I feel as good as I have in six or seven years. I think a lot of the reason I probably missed longer than I could have been with the next 18 months in mind,” Cummins said.

“Stress fractures in your back happen quite often and we just wanted to eliminate all those risks to make sure that if I had a problem six months from now it could take me out of a lot of those 20 Tests. So physically I feel great. My back is fully healed, really strong. We’ve taken a very low-risk approach to rehab to give us the best chance to play all those Test matches,” he concluded.

Since returning to the SRH side, Cummins has been a key part of the attack. The fast bowler not only provided SRH with key breakthroughs but also maintained sensational economy in most of his matches.

SRH will play their last league match against RCB at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Friday, May 22. A massive win by 88 runs or more would give SRH an outside chance of finishing in the top two this season.

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Issued by:

Kingshuk Kusari

Published on:

22 May 2026 11:28 IST

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