Cummins given the green light for Shield return

It’s been almost six years since his last match but fit-again Australian paceman Pat Cummins has finally been cleared to play Sheffield Shield for NSW.

Cummins is in the selection frame for NSW’s clash with South Australia starting Tuesday.

His last Shield outing was the 2011 final when, as a 17-year-old, he claimed three wickets in a loss to Tasmania before making his Test debut later in the year.

In his sole Test, he won the man-of-the-match following a game-tilting six-wicket second innings haul against South Africa in Johannesburg.

The injury-prone quick has starred in limited overs cricket over recent years, but it’s understood Cricket Australia medical staff have held him back from longer formats until satisfied with his conditioning.

After struggles with mainly back problems over recent years, the one-time Australian Test quick – who regularly bowls upwards of 150km/h – has not yet featured in NSW’s Sheffield Shield season.

He played two Futures League matches for NSW earlier in the summer, before featuring in Australia’s one-day international series against New Zealand and Pakistan.

An impressive Big Bash campaign for the Sydney Thunder, where he took seven wickets in six matches, also saw him selected for last month’s three-match Twenty20 series against Sri Lanka.

Cricket NSW is expected to confirm his selection against South Australia on Monday.