Cummins Lauds Australia's Dominant Start to World Test Championship Campaign

Australian captain Pat Cummins has expressed his satisfaction with his team's performance at the beginning of the new World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. Australia, a consistent contender in the WTC finals, have secured victories in their first two Test matches of this cycle, achieving a series-clinching win against the West Indies in Grenada.

Cummins delighted with the team's bounce-back after the WTC Final. © AFP

"It's not easy to secure an away win, so I'm really happy with how we responded after Lord's (WTC Final)," Cummins stated following the Grenada Test. "It's been a productive couple of weeks. With the pink ball coming up next week, it's great to have already secured the series. These matches always present unique challenges. It's a dream start, winning two out of two, setting us up well in the cycle, and we've played some excellent cricket."

Cummins also commended the experienced players in the squad, especially Steve Smith, whose crucial half-century helped the team recover from a precarious 28/3 situation in the second innings, with a lead of only 61 runs. "I believe experience plays a significant role; we discussed the importance of having someone like Steve Smith in the team," Cummins noted. "He might not have played at Grenada, but he has played on various wickets where you need to find different ways to score. It might not always be about hitting big drives down the ground; sometimes you need to grind your way to a 50, and that's where experience comes in."

He added, "With experience, you've encountered similar challenges before, allowing you to maintain a level of calmness to navigate through them. As a captain, it simplifies my job knowing that we have a team of composed and settled players."

Regarding young opener Sam Konstas, who has struggled to make an impact in the series, scoring only 33 runs in four innings, the 32-year-old captain expressed his support. "Every innings can feel like the most important thing in the world," he said about Konstas. "But statistically, even the best batters in the world don't hit their average three out of four times. Failure is more common than success."

Cummins advised, "As long as you are a quick learner, moving well, and giving yourself the best opportunity, just keep focusing on that and evaluate yourself after a series or so, rather than after each innings."

Another opener facing scrutiny in the series is Kraigg Brathwaite, the former West Indies captain. Despite his recent struggles, Brathwaite's 100th Test didn't yield the desired results. With scores of 4, 4, 0, and 7, his future in the next game is being considered by head coach Daren Sammy. "He hasn't looked good this series, and in a team searching for performances, we are getting close to asking if we should give someone else a chance," Sammy stated. "But we will have a thorough discussion involving myself, the selection group, and the captain about that particular situation."

Sammy also acknowledged that Caribbean pitches need improvement to cultivate better Test batters. "It's challenging to produce the quality of batters needed to compete when you look at the surfaces we play on," he remarked.

He continued, "If you examine the averages, we barely have players averaging over 40 in (first-class) cricket. These types of pitches don't allow players to develop technically sound skills because there's constant uncertainty. In an ideal scenario, we want our players to perform because of their skills, not in spite of the conditions. This is something myself, the director of cricket, and the franchise system have been closely examining to implement changes, including sending head groundsmen to various locations to create wickets that allow batters to trust their techniques. We also likely have some technical deficiencies that persist from the Under-19 and youth levels up to the national team."