Australia's preparations for the second Twenty20 international against India later on Sunday have been upset with fast bowler Mitchell Starc released for the remainder of the series on compassionate grounds.
Cummins, who was previously optimistic of taking part in a significant chunk of the series, appears to have no chance of playing the series opener in Perth from November 21 and could even miss all five Tests, leaving superstar batter Steve Smith as his stand-in captain.
Virat Kohli remains the biggest draw as he returns to his 'home ground' at the back of five half-centuries in nine games. Four of them have come away from the Chinnaswamy Stadium and despite being in the opposition camp, the Delhi crowd will be hoping the Indian superstar extends his prolific run in the tournament.
Pat Cummins will captain Australia at the Champions Trophy after being named in a preliminary 15-man squad also featuring fellow quick Josh Hazlewood on Tuesday.
Australian pacer Mitchell Starc was reprimanded for "exaggerated celebration" after dismissing batsman Murali Vijay in the ongoing fourth and final Test in Sydney.
Shreyas Iyer-led KKR crushed Sunrisers Hyderabad in Sunday's final by eight wickets to win their third IPL title.
This is the most open T20 World Cup in history. The traditional powers are compromised. The new powers have gained strength, observes Faisal Shariff.
Australia's senior batter Steve Smith has been ruled out of the remainder of the World Test Championship final against South Africa at Lord's after suffering a compound dislocation of his right pinkie on Friday.
'Most expensive player in your team can't be your weak link.'
Scott Boland will step up and uncapped Brendan Doggett is tipped for a high-stakes debut to try to shore up the loss of a combined 604 Test wickets of experience.
The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 auction saw some foreign names earning big bucks, headlined by Aussie all-rounder Cameron Green
England were spared the ignominy of the follow-on but Australia appeared on course for victory after dominating day three of the day-night second Ashes Test at the Adelaide Oval on Saturday.
Australian pace spearhead Mitchell Starc described Virat Kohli as a 'fantastic captain', having shared the dressing room with the India captain while representing Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League.
Mitchell Starc's first ball of the match was as good as Steve Harmison's was poor, a full yorker which went behind the legs of hapless England opener Rory Burns and swung into the base of his stumps
Left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc is likely to miss Australia's upcoming limited-overs series against India due to injury, according to reports.
An optimistic Mitchell Starc said he was hopeful of returning to Australia's playing eleven for the second Test against India, starting in Delhi on Friday.
Mitchell Starc remains in doubt for the Boxing Day Test against England with a bruised heel but scans have cleared the Australia pace spearhead of serious injury.
Mohammed Shami has etched his name in the record books, becoming the fastest Indian and the second-fastest bowler in the world to claim 200 wickets in ODIs
'You have to move ahead with whatever (players) you have and ensure they perform.'
Images from the IPL 2025 match between Delhi Capitals and Sunrisers Hyderabad in Visakhapatnam on Sunday.
Starc will travel to Adelaide with several other members of the Australian side and the Indian team on a charter flight
Pat Cummins is the eighth Australian to join the 300 club, no mean feat for any bowler but particularly one who he had to wait more than five years for his second Test appearance after a spate of injuries.
England have not won the Ashes in Australia after losing the first Test since the 1950s but McCullum and Stokes will remain convinced they can turn the series around, just as they did against South Africa in 2022 when they won 2-1 after losing the opener at Lord's.
With no ODI series in Australia in the next two years, it is impossible to think that the legendary duo will again be seen Down Under in India blues.
IMAGES from Day 1 of the WTC Final between Australia and South Africa at Lord's on Wednesday
Pat Cummins tore through South Africa before a Proteas fightback left the ICC World Test Championship Final 2025 on a knife-edge at the end of an absorbing second day at Lord's.
Rahul, who had joined Delhi Capitals' training camp just a day before the high-stakes clash, was unavailable for the match as he was on paternity leave.
Australia held their nerve in a tense chase, edging past India by two wickets to seal the series 2-0 despite a late fightback from the visitors on Thursday in Adelaide.
Delhi Capitals annihilated Lucknow Super Giants by eight wickets in an IPL match in Lucknow on Tuesday.
Shaken by the abrupt suspension of their previous match due to the India-Pakistan conflict, a struggling Delhi Capitals will look to regroup and address bowling concerns when they face table-toppers Gujarat Titans in a reverse-leg IPL clash in Delhi on Sunday to keep their play-off hopes alive.
Australia's David Warner smashed an incendiary half-century and Mitchell Starc claimed 4-20 to help the hosts beat West Indies by 31 runs in the second Twenty20 International and complete a 2-0 series sweep in Brisbane on Friday.
Smith dislocated his right little finger in last month's World Test Championship final and will be required to wear a splint for five weeks, Cricket Australia said.
Expect nothing less than hostility, fire and close contests as Ben Stokes' England come armed with their Bazball philosophy to try and get the better of a depleted Australia.
Fresh from their morale-boosting win over LSG, and bolstered by the return of India wicketkeeper-batter K L Rahul, Delhi Capitals will look to build on the momentum when they take on formidable Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL match in Visakhapatnam on Sunday.
Australian pace spearhead Mitchell Starc has pulled out of this year's Indian Premier League season, ending his association with his franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Starc didn't want to spend 22 weeks in bio-bubble
Australia fast bowler Mitchell Starc has been ruled out of the fourth Test against South Africa and the upcoming Indian Premier League due to a stress fracture in his leg.
The Indian batters will have to put their best their foot forward against Australia in the series-deciding third ODI in Chennai on Tuesday.
It was a frustrating day for the loyal crowd of 16,180 but perhaps more so for the home team, whose chances of forcing a result were progressively eroded.
There were some magical moments in the field from both teams that brought fans and franchise owners to their feet.
