As a kid, when you idolise Brett Lee, there is an excellent chance you are going to become a fast bowler.
Pat Cummins did just that, and he became the fast bowler we wished for: lean, fast and accurate with an eye-pleasing action.
Cummins caught the eyes of selectors, and he started playing at the elite level when he was a teenager. The luck was not on his side. A string of injuries hit him. And we did not see the best of him until 2017 when he played in the home Ashes series.
Since then, he has been on the top of his game. Whenever Australia needed him, he has delivered.
He has held the top slot in the Test bowlers ranking for quite a while now, and he is Australia’s most important bowler. And when you are the best bowler among Josh Hazlewood, Mitch Starc and Nathan Lyon, you know you are more than special.
(Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
In the IPL 2020 auction, Kolkata paid a record-breaking $3.16 million for Pat Cummins, the most expensive overseas buy in IPL history. But with a price tag like that comes greater responsibility.
There is absolutely no doubt that Cummins will be feeling the heat. When he was taken apart in the first match against the Mumbai Indians, Twitter exploded, and people started reminding him about his earnings as if he doesn’t know.
Such is the impatience of sports lovers, one match and the doubts creep up. Cummins has played under immense pressure before. This is nothing he has not seen before. When he got that big deal, he knew what he was signing for, and there was no going back.
Cummins has an advantage over those who have succumbed to the pressure of IPL: he has played Test matches consistently for a long time now. Test cricket makes you grow steel nerves.
T20 is a batsman’s game, but Jasprit Bumrah shows the world that with pace and the right line and length, bowlers can take over as well. Pat Cummins is fast, and can swing and hit the seam, which makes him a complete bowler.
His next appearance will be against Hyderabad, and wouldn’t that be a treat to watch: David Warner versus Pat Cummins. I have always preferred fast bowlers over big hitters, and maybe it is because big hitters are now in abundance and I crave fast bowlers. Whatever the reason, one thing is for sure: a good spell of fast bowling is a sight for sore eyes.
There’s a quality spell of fast bowling around the corner. I can feel him feeling it. Whatever happens over the next month or so, it will be interesting to watch. Cummins will be coming out with everything he has got.
Mike Maj
Roar Rookie
Absolutely agreed, Pat did not demand that sort of money – it just sort of came his way. If anything, there are other players who are renowned as far better T20 players that are on way less, but there are other factors at play. (1) Pat is a great face for any team to have, from an endorsement and brand perspective – very well known, well presented as a person and comes across as a genuine good guy; (2) His franchise, KKR, do not have any of the big name Indian fast bowlers (Bumrah, Bhuvenshwar, Shami, Sharma, etc.). Therefore it is no surprise that they went pretty hard to get who they thought was the absolute best overseas fast bowler in the world. Pat and Andre Russell are pretty critical players for them as a result (3) Pat Cummins has demonstrated he’s a pretty good batsman in T20 and was batting as high as 6 for the Thunder a couple of years ago. His batting has definitely not looked as a good in the last little bit for Australia, but no surprise given his increased seniority with the ball. He’s a decent batsman and I think on the grounds in UAE which don’t do much for the bowlers and are relatively smaller, he’s a pseudo-all rounder option (4) Again, looking at the squad of KKR I think they’d love to have someone of Pat’s leadership quality – he is the VC of Australia and they would value that. Between Karthik / Morgan/ Cummins that’s a really good leadership group
Mike
Guest
Absolutely agreed, Pat did not demand that sort of money - it just sort of came his way. If anything, there are other players who are renowned as far better T20 players that are on way less, but there are other factors at play. (1) Pat is a great face for any team to have, from an endorsement and brand perspective - very well known, well presented as a person and comes across as a genuine good guy; (2) His franchise, KKR, do not have any of the big name Indian fast bowlers (Bumrah, Bhuvenshwar, Shami, Sharma, etc.). Therefore it is no surprise that they went pretty hard to get who they thought was the absolute best overseas fast bowler in the world. Pat and Andre Russell are pretty critical players for them as a result (3) Pat Cummins has demonstrated he's a pretty good batsman in T20 and was batting as high as 6 for the Thunder a couple of years ago. His batting has definitely not looked as a good in the last little bit for Australia, but no surprise given his increased seniority with the ball. He's a decent batsman and I think on the grounds in UAE which don't do much for the bowlers and are relatively smaller, he's a pseudo-all rounder option (4) Again, looking at the squad of KKR I think they'd love to have someone of Pat's leadership quality - he is the VC of Australia and they would value that. Between Karthik / Morgan/ Cummins that's a really good leadership group
Chris Love
Roar Guru
Yeh he should have got MoM for that performance.
dungerBob
Roar Rookie
I see he did much better in the next match. 4-1-19 is pretty tidy. .. onya Patty.
Rob
Guest
I can't imagine that Cummins is going to be too fazed by what is being said about him by Indian fans on Twitter. He is on big money but that's a risk that the franchise has taken. It's not as though he demanded that money to come and play. He put his name in a hat and someone decided that he was worth a ridiculous amount of money. One thing you know for sure with Cummins is that he is going to bust his gut everytime he steps out on the field. So even if he puts in a few average efforts, it won't be through a lack of trying.
Paul
Roar Guru
Again though, I think it's important to separate two very different issues - expectations versus return on investment. I'm no different in my expectations of Cummins regardless how much a franchise was prepared to pay. He is a world class bowler who I thought would be tested in the IPL, but should still do well. If he had an off game or an average series, that still would have been okay, given the series is in the UAE, the various restrictions forced by the current virus crisis, etc. That's very different from those who out up the money to buy him at auction. They would want nothing less than a stellar season, with his team making the finals and preferably winning the tournament. They in turn have driven expectation to a frenzy as you suggest, but that's only because they paid so much for his services. I also don't think the big bucks seriously entered Cummins mind when he nominated. I'm sure he was hoping a) to be chosen and b) to make plenty from this tournament, but even if he was on a fraction of the money he's going to get, I'm sure he still would have put in exactly the same effort.
Usama Khalid
Roar Rookie
Yes, that was bizarre. Before that over, I think Bumrah gave away 4 odd runs in 3 overs.
Usama Khalid
Roar Rookie
Paul, I agree with you. But, When a player of Pat Cummins caliber puts his name forward, he is expecting big bucks (maybe not as high as he received), and when the franchise pays such a hefty fee, they are expecting the best in return. Point is that the expectations are going to be there, which was obvious from the twitter frenzy we saw after the first match. And this is going to be a different challenge in the “Pat Cummins Journey”, I am a huge fan of him and I am excited to see how he copes with this challenge.
Paul
Roar Guru
Usama, I think you need to be vary careful combining what a franchise was prepared to pay for someone with the outcomes that player achieves. Cummins didn't demand the big bucks. He entered his name into a lottery and someone decided he was worth north of 3 million bucks. Essentially whoever made that decision is gambling on his success, but as we know in sport, there's no guarantee of success. I agree Cummins is a hugely talented quick who will try his best. If he doesn't have huge success, surely the fact that his franchisee gambled and lost is neither here nor there? He also won't be the first player to have received the big bucks and had a poor tournament.
Buzzsaw
Roar Rookie
Ha ha ,Bumrah was taken for 27 in one over ,by Cummins
Usama Khalid
Roar Rookie
Again I completely agree with you, actually with all of the things you said. But, I think he has the ability to prove people wrong. And I hope he proves us wrong because I absolutely love him. He is just wonderfully built.
Usama Khalid
Roar Rookie
You are right, but India is no different for fast bowlers. Those who paid big bucks must have something in mind. And as I said, Jasprit Bumrah treated us with a wonderful spell. So you never know with Cummo.
DaveJ
Roar Rookie
“As a kid, when you idolise Brett Lee, there is an excellent chance you are going to become a fast bowler.” Didn’t work for me when I idolised a much greater fast bowler in the person of Dennis Lillee? I must say, it’s not hugely surprising if Cummins has some bad game on Indian or UAE wickets. He’s not super fast and doesn’t have a big box of tricks, and hasn’t really stood out in his T20 career to date. I’m sure he’ll find a way to get some better results, but I think he just needs to be philosophical, keep his head up, do his best, and take the money and be prepared to run in the sense he won’t get as big a contract next time. It was Kolkata’s mistake, not his - he’s a great Test bowler and fine in ODIs too, but just doesn’t look like a $3m dollar man in the IPL- surely that’s money for the best batsmen, leggies, the odd all rounder and maybe an exceptional bowler like Bumrah. (But I Hope he proves me wrong.)
dungerBob
Roar Rookie
Not sure the UAE is the absolute best place for a fast bowler to be plying his trade though. It won't surprise me if most of the faster bowlers take a bit of a pasting by the time this years tourny is over. Still, hopefully Pat can put in a few good performances and go some way towards justifying the outrageous and over the top price tag.