Keep calm and carry on: Why captain Cummins has always been the man for a crisis

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As England’s buccaneering batters were threatening to blast the first Ashes Test out of Australia’s grip, vice-captain Steve Smith stood at a wide and lonely first slip gesticulating to his captain, Pat Cummins.

Standing at mid-on with his arms by his sides, Cummins slowly moved his hands until they were parallel to the ground, in a minimalist gesture that everything was OK. This was enough for Smith to rub his hands together, refocus on the bowler and set himself for the next delivery.

Australia went on to win an unforgettable Ashes clash by two wickets in the final session, as Cummins kept his cool in the eye of the storm.

Cummins made it clear from the moment he became Australia’s first permanent fast bowling captain that he wanted Smith as his “elevated” deputy, but there’s no doubt who is in charge.

Tim Paine, Cummins’ predecessor as Australia skipper, has always liked what he’s seen in the pedigree fast bowler and understands more than most the extra challenges involved when your primary skill is demanded in the field rather than with the bat.

Paine was the first wicketkeeper appointed permanent Australia captain. He admits the dual roles weren’t easy, but says modern captaincy is different.

Pat Cummins celebrates a remarkable victory at Edgbaston.Credit: Getty

“Gone are the days where it’s a one-man show,” Paine says. “You’ve got a lot of support – senior players, your vice captains, you’ve got support staff – you’ve got plenty of support around you. So, that certainly helps.

“Whether your best captain’s a fast bowler or wicketkeeper or a spinner doesn’t make any difference – your best captain’s your best captain.”

Smith and Cummins are polar opposites who complement each other: Smith with the hyperactive body and overactive mind who can’t sleep during Test matches; Cummins the understated thoroughbred who saves all his energy so he can perform as the world’s best fast bowler.

Another former Australia captain, Mark Taylor, likes what he sees in the contrasting combination.

“He uses Steve Smith quite a bit, which I know some of my predecessors don’t like, but I think it’s clever,” Taylor says. “It’s a good idea because there’s a lot going on when you’re the No.1 strike bowler, and then you’ve got a spinner at the other end and Nathan Lyon is also looking dangerous and needs subtle changes in the field. This is often not easy to do when you’ve just finished your six overs of pace bowling.”

When he was appointed Test captain 20 months ago, Cummins said Smith was, “So central to how I see my captaincy style, but also how I see the team functioning.”

Taylor highlighted Cummins’ day four performance at Edgbaston, when England were batting in their second innings and threatening to take the game away from Australia. Cummins and Lyon were outstanding, containing England to a lead of 280.

Cummins claimed 4-63 from 18.2 overs and Lyon 4-80 from 24 overs to have eight wickets for the match, leaving Lyon five short of 500 Test wickets. Together, they bowled 42.2 of the 66.2 overs England faced in their second innings.

Pat Cummins’ wickets on day four were almost forgotten amid his batting heroics at Edgbaston, but they were crucial to Australia’s victory.Credit: Getty

“I think he’s done an excellent job,” Taylor says of Cummins’ captaincy. “The hardest thing for him was always going to be in the field, as we saw on day four in the first Test, when it was really difficult, when you’ve got a side attacking you with the bat.

“He’s got to decide when to bowl himself, how long to bowl himself for, think about who’s going to bowl at the other end, and then sort the field settings that he’s got to set. I think using that barometer, he did a very good job on day four.

“He bowled himself a little bit more, which he had to do because he looked the most likely. And sometimes you’ve got to do that. It’s not about sharing the workload all the time. It’s if you’re the best option, go ahead and bowl yourself, and I think he summed that up.”

But the most memorable part of Cummins’ performance, in one of the game’s most memorable of matches, was his 44 not out, the team’s second-highest score in the second innings, which included the winning boundary and was part of an unbroken 55-run partnership with Lyon (16 not out).

Pat Cummins and Australia celebrate a wicket in his debut against South Africa in 2011, a match that has striking similarities to what happened at Edgbaston.Credit: Getty

It had echoes of Cummins’ Test debut in South Africa 12 years earlier as an 18-year-old, when he claimed 6-79 in the second innings, then hit a boundary to win the match with Australia chasing 310 for victory. He was player of the match.

It is performances like these, says Paine, that make Cummins a natural leader. He stands up when it counts and people follow.

“Because of his personality, and how he is as a bloke, he’s easy to warm to, he’s easy to talk to, which makes him a good leader,” Paine says. “After a while, it actually became quite clear who was probably going to be the next captain. The only issue was people saying about him being a fast bowler, which wasn’t an issue, and isn’t an issue.”

Leadership isn’t just about what happens on the field, and Cummins has had his moments in the shade. He has been condemned by some as “woke” because of his strong views on climate change and active support for renewable energy.

He overcame a string of serious injuries early in his career and, more broadly, he was condemned by some of Australia’s former greats for his role in Justin Langer being replaced as coach.

However, Cummins has remained serene in the face of such criticism, and the team has melded behind him. Australia were the best Test team in the world for most of the recent two-year cycle of the World Test Championship, culminating in the final against India at the Oval this month, which Australia won by 209 runs.

Now Australia have begun the new Test Championship cycle with victory over England, giving them 13 wins, five draws and just three loses during Cummins’ time as skipper.

“You see that belief to be able to win from anywhere,” Cummins said after the dramatic victory. “Having that belief that anyone’s a match winner; you can be the guy to step up and win.”

And just as he did in his Test debut 12 years ago, Cummins was that guy.

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