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Australia's selection chief the selector has stated that captain Pat Cummins will be a central figure in the upcoming historic rivalry.

Rumors had circulated that the 32-year-old might be unavailable due to a persistent back stress problem that was still troubling him.

Initial reports from the squad suggested no official announcement had been made regarding Cummins' participation, with the extended contest set to start on 21 November in Perth.

Bailey expressed that Cummins is "building up" and remained hopeful about the prospects of participating.

"We know that the window is narrowing and multiple considerations at play, not just the back issue, but further aspects," Bailey remarked.

"The outlook is good. There's strong faith that he will feature a significant role. Ideally starting in Perth. If not, we'll reassess."

Previous Setbacks

The captain missed Australia's limited-overs series against India and New Zealand last month after medical tests showed a lower back issue.

Previous incidents include of spinal problems, with flare-ups in multiple past seasons leading to absences from multiple domestic campaigns in four years.

He emphasized he would be bold in recovery efforts in his rehabilitation process to ensure his availability for the Ashes.

Bailey noted that there was no confirmation if Cummins had begun bowling as part of his recovery but conceded it was "becoming urgent" for him to regain fitness for the opener.

Backup Options

Should Cummins not be fit, former captain Steve Smith will assume leadership.

Versatile player Green was recently pulled out from the ODI lineup for their ODI contests against the Asian giants as a preventive step because of soreness in his side.

Bailey described it as a "slight concern and mentioned that he's scheduled to appear in the state-level matches, so will be "ideally positioned to deliver overs."

"Extensive planning has gone into building out the plan for him to participate for the first Test as an batting and bowling option," he elaborated.

"His involvement was limited to the initial matches in any case. How he handles the willow in shorter formats, if it causes any delay for 24 more hours, we just made the decision to approach this more conservatively."

Match Calendar

The Ashes: Australia v England

Spanning from late 2025 to early 2026