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The Australian selection chief George Bailey has confirmed that captain Pat Cummins will have a crucial role in the upcoming historic rivalry.

Rumors had circulated that Cummins might be unavailable due to a ongoing back issue that was still troubling him.

Earlier indications from the squad suggested no official announcement had been made regarding his involvement, with the extended contest kicking off on the 21st of November in the WACA.

Bailey expressed that the captain is progressing and was "optimistic" about the likelihood of participating.

"We know that the window is narrowing and various factors involved, aside from his injury, but additional elements," Bailey remarked.

"The outlook is good. There's strong faith that he will feature a key capacity. With luck from the opening match. Should that not happen, we'll adjust."

Previous Setbacks

Cummins was ruled out the white-ball matches against both Asian and Trans-Tasman rivals in the previous weeks after examinations confirmed a lower back issue.

He has a history of back injuries, with setbacks in multiple past seasons leading to absences from several home seasons in a limited period.

Cummins stated he would be ""aggressive" and "take risks" in his comeback strategy to make the squad for the series.

The selector indicated that he did not know if Cummins had begun bowling as part of his recovery but admitted it was "becoming urgent" for him to recover fully for the initial match.

Alternative Arrangements

In case of absence, veteran batsman Smith will lead the side.

All-rounder Cameron Green was withdrawn recently from Australia's squad for their ODI contests against India as a precautionary measure because of soreness in his side.

The selector characterized it as a "minor" injury and confirmed that he's scheduled to appear in the state-level matches, so will be "well-prepared to deliver overs."

"We put so much time has gone into creating the schedule for him to take part for the opening match as an batting and bowling option," Bailey explained.

"Originally, he'd only feature in the first two ODIs regardless. His aggressive style the willow in shorter formats, if it causes any delay for another day, the choice was made to approach this more conservatively."

Match Calendar

The Historic Rivalry

Spanning from late 2025 to early 2026