‘Just Ran Out of Time’: Pat Cummins Speaks After Being Ruled Out of T20 World Cup
Australia captain says he “just ran out of time” after back issue flares up Ben Dwarshuis named replacement
NEW DELHI, Jan 03: Australia fast bowler Pat Cummins has opened up on the back injury that forced him out of the 2026 T20 World Cup, saying a minor setback left him short of time to recover fully before the tournament.
Cummins sustained the injury during Australia’s tour of the West Indies in July 2025 and has featured in just one Test match since then. The 32 year old had limited his workload during the Ashes, playing only one of the five Tests, in a bid to regain full fitness ahead of the T20 World Cup.
Despite encouraging progress, Cummins was eventually ruled out after a follow up scan showed the injury needed more recovery time. He opted not to risk long-term damage and was replaced by left arm pacer Ben Dwarshuis in Australia’s World Cup squad.
“It was really unfortunate. I feel pretty good, just a minor setback and I just ran out of time,” Cummins told AAP. “I’ll rest for a few weeks and take it from there.”
He explained that the medical team had initially estimated a four-to-eight-week recovery window following the Adelaide Test. “At first we thought it might only be four weeks because I was feeling great, but the scan showed it needed a couple more weeks. The timeline became too tight,” he said.
Injury concerns linger for Australia
Australia have dealt with several fitness issues heading into the tournament. Tim David and Nathan Ellis, who missed the recent T20I series against Pakistan while recovering from injuries, have since regained full fitness and are expected to be available throughout the World Cup.
Josh Hazlewood, however, remains doubtful due to an ongoing Achilles problem and is likely to miss the opening phase of the competition. As a precaution, Australia have added Sean Abbott as a travelling reserve.
Australia begin their T20 World Cup campaign against Ireland on February 11, with their final playing combination still uncertain amid the injury concerns.
Australia squad for T20 World Cup
Mitchell Marsh (c), Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Tim David, Ben Dwarshuis, Cameron Green, Nathan Ellis, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Glenn Maxwell, Matthew Renshaw, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa
