Ashes Scout: New skipper? Cummins receives key call-up as Bailey makes big Paine decision

Is this the new-age way of announcing a Test captain?

Welcome back to Ashes Scout, where The Roar will take a closer look at all the news you need to know ahead of a blockbuster summer of cricket.

Big Ant Studios have revealed that Pat Cummins will feature on the updated digital cover of their upcoming Cricket 22 video game alongside women’s skipper Meg Lanning.

The game, which will be released next Thursday, had been slated for a November 25 release but was pushed back when Tim Paine, who was originally on the cover, resigned as Test captain last week.

Big Ant Studios also produced the Ashes Cricket and Cricket 19: The Official Game of the Ashes titles, with the men’s and women’s national captains featuring on each cover.

While some may believe Cummins replacing Paine on the Cricket 22 artwork is a sign he’ll soon be anointed Australia’s 47th men’s Test skipper, the paceman was the logical choice for Big Ant on short notice given his status as vice-captain.

Paine will remain on the cover of physical copies of the upcoming game.

If the Test captaincy was decided by expert opinion alone, Cummins would already have been elevated to the top job.

Retired greats Adam Gilchrist, Mike Hussey and Michael Clarke are among the latest voices to back the 28-year-old to succeed as a rare fast-bowling skipper.

Former leader Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne have been floated as other options.

“I think Pat Cummins is the frontrunner there. I’ve got no problems with him having first opportunity. They should have him if he’s keen to do it – and he must be reasonably happy to take the role given he’s vice-captain,” Gilchrist told Reuters.

The well-documented knock on Cummins is his hefty bowling workload. While he struggled with injuries early in his career, Cummins has proven exceptionally durable in recent years.

There have been suggestions of Cricket Australia wanting to rest their quicks throughout the Ashes, but Cummins made it clear before Paine stepped down that he was keen to push through the summer.

“I see no reason to pigeonhole Pat as a fast bowler who can’t do it [as captain],” Gilchrist said.

“I just think Pat Cummins has developed into a more integral part of that team and grown in his knowledge of the game and experiences he’s had.

“I think it’s a case of while you’re away someone else has come in over the top of you, to an extent. Steve Smith could very well take the captaincy again but Pat Cummins will be the guy they lean to now.”

Hussey, too, is a fervent Cummins fan.

Having played alongside an 18-year-old Cummins in his remarkable Test debut against South Africa in Johannesburg in 2011, Hussey described him as the “ultimate box ticker”.

“He has played through one of the most tumultuous periods in Australian cricket history, and has done so with reputation enhanced and character unblemished,” Hussey wrote in a column for Code Sports.

But he added: “There is a reason why Australia hasn’t had a fast-bowling Test captain since Ray Lindwall, and that was for a one-off Test way back in 1956.

“Quicks have it tough. They’re often fatigued, thinking about their own bowling and more prone to injury given the strenuous nature of their craft.”

Still, Hussey said that while he’d have no problem with Smith stepping back into the role, Cummins looms as the right man for a precarious situation.

And, as Clarke pointed out, he’d have plenty of support from senior players like Smith, David Warner, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood.

“I think [Cummins] has had a huge amount of respect from everyone, really – particularly from his teammates, so I think that’s the way they will lean,” Clarke said on Sky Sports Radio.

However, he said patience will be paramount if the honour is bestowed upon the Penrith product.

“You have to allow him time to get into this job because he hasn’t had 10 years of captain [in] first-grade or state cricket,” Clarke said.

“But sometimes you can see certain things in people, and I think he’s got it. He reads the game.

“He’s a cricket captain, looking at on-the-field tactics, the way he talks to his players, the way he sets the field when he bowls.”

Bailey to step aside on Paine decision if required

George Bailey’s closeness to Paine could have put him a tight spot.

As long-time teammates for Tasmania, as well being co-franchisees of a Body Fit Training gym in Hobart, it would have been tough if Bailey had to decide the freshly-departed Test captain’s playing fate.

That’s why Australia’s chief selector will allow Tony Dodemaide and coach Justin Langer to rule on Paine in the event the wicketkeeper’s selection for the first Ashes Test isn’t unanimous.

“If the panel was not in agreeance on Tim’s position going forward, and it was going to come down to a vote, then I would step aside and leave that to Tony and Justin to work through,” Bailey told the Cricket, Et Cetera podcast.

“They’re both aware of that.”

It seems Langer is still backing Paine in the wake of resignation.

In an interview with the Herald Sun, Paine revealed Langer was “devastated” about his call to step down. “He was pretty firm that he wanted me to continue as captain,” Paine said.

Regardless, Bailey has moved to dispel any notion of favouritism on his part by offering to remove himself from the potential Paine debate.

Renowned for his integrity and leadership when he was Australia’s white-ball captain, Bailey has made no secret of his “strong friendships and relationships” with many players.

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“I guess that can be viewed a number of ways, that there could be a tendency to be go easier or vice versa – it could go the other way, you could go harder on players at times,” he said.

“But I truly believe that having strong relationships with the players, it just doubly makes sure that I do the job to the best of my ability.

“I understand the decisions we make have large ramifications both positive and negative for players and their families.

“It’s not something that’s taken lightly and we put the work in because of that, to just make sure we’re trying to make sure it’s the best possible decision that we can [make], whether it’s with Tim or with anyone.”

Barmy Army turning Paine scandal into song

It was clear from the outset that Paine’s indiscretion would be fodder for The Barmy Army.

And in news that will surprise no one, England’s famous supporters club have taken to Twitter to ask for lyric suggestions as they piece together “Painey’s Song”.

One thing’s for sure: Paine will need some thick skin if he is to get through the Ashes.

Beefy’s doubts over Anderson, Broad durability

At 39 and 35 respectively, England quicks James Anderson and Stuart Broad are likely to feel the strain of an arduous Ashes campaign, especially if Australia’s batters fire.

As such, Sir Ian Botham has encouraged England to be “brave” with their bowling options, saying Anderson and Broad, the latter of whom is recovering from a calf tear, don’t have to play each match.

“There’s no point in us turning up with four 80-mile-an-hour bowlers because once that Kookaburra ball, after 10 overs, is going to get smashed to all parts at that pace,” Botham told The Mirror.

“You need people like Mark Wood, Ben Stokes, (Ollie) Robinson – these are the guys that are going to play.

“Jimmy is going to play, but I don’t see him playing all the Tests, and I certainly don’t see Broady playing all the Tests.

“You’ve got to look after Jimmy, he’s what, 39 now, so he needs a little bit of TLC, but he will have a part to play.

“Above everything else, he’s a senior pro and he can offer so much advice to the other guys, so it’s essential he’s there.”

The champion England all-rounder unsurprisingly pointed to “match-winner” Ben Stokes as being a key to the team’s chances of reclaiming the urn.

“I hope that he’s fit enough to bowl and strong enough because I think that will be crucial. Because he’s an aggressive bowler,” Botham added of Stokes.

“Everyone talks about his batting – we know about that – but I think his bowling needs to be used in four or five-over bursts on those Australian pitches when the ball is reasonably new as well.”