Pat Cummins has slipped quietly out of the Sunrisers Hyderabad camp and back to Australia for what is billed as one last check-up on his troublesome back.
The visit, arranged in conjunction with Cricket Australia, was always pencilled in. He departed straight after Thursday night’s defeat to Kolkata Knight Riders and, if specialists give the all-clear, is due back with Sunrisers on 17 April.
Before the tournament the 32-year-old was up-front about the plan, saying: “if nothing goes wrong, [I’ll] play the back half [of the IPL] plus the finals [if SRH get there]”. Since arriving in India he has been sending down spells in practice but remains short of competitive overs.
Sunrisers are used to the uncertainty. Ishan Kishan was handed the captaincy once it became obvious Cummins would miss the opening rounds and will stay in charge for now. Eshan Malinga and David Payne continue as the overseas pace options.
Cummins has not featured regularly since the first signs of the injury last July. One Ashes Test in December is his only match in nine months, a fleeting comeback that ended with another flare-up and his withdrawal from February’s T20 World Cup. At the time he called it a “minor setback”.
Speaking on the Business of Sports podcast a week before flying to India, he sounded upbeat. “I’m still recovering from a back injury, but it’s good. I’m back bowling in the nets. The IPL is starting soon. I won’t make the start of that, but it shouldn’t be too long before I’m back out there playing.”
He added: “I’m back bowling. I’m bowling basically every third day at the moment. We’ve mapped out a plan to get me right by [the] middle of the tournament.”
For Sunrisers, the fixture list waits for no one. Their next outing is Sunday afternoon at home to Lucknow Super Giants, the third of a long group phase. If Cummins does reappear in mid-April, it leaves roughly half the league programme, plus any knock-out matches, to make his mark.
It is not ideal, but neither team nor player is panicking. A clean scan and a gentle ramp-up are the goals; the rest will follow.
