New Delhi, Oct 8 (IANS) Australia captain Pat Cummins is expected to miss the Ashes opener in Perth with a possibility that he may miss the entire Test series against England as the scans revealed his back stress problem had not yet healed.

Cummins had been battling back soreness since featuring during Australia’s tour of the Caribbean in July and recent scans confirmed a lumbar bone stress to the affected area.

According to Sydney Morning Herald report, Cummins is no chance for the opener in Perth, starting on November 21, and may even miss all five Tests, leaving Steve Smith as the likely stand-in skipper to face England.

The 32-year-old pacer Cummins had the update scan last week to clarify his progress ahead of the Test summer and was told that while the stress “hot spot” was healing, it has not yet cleared up enough for him to bowl, the report added.

The loss of Cummins with a back stress injury is a massive blow to Australia’s chances of retaining the Ashes urn that Australia have held since 2018.

In Cummins absence, fellow quick Scott Boland looks his most likely replacement, with experienced trio Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon almost certain to feature.

Last month, the Aussie Test captain had put a loose timeline on his return to the bowling crease.

“I’d imagine (I’d want to be bowling) at minimum a month out, maybe six weeks,” Cummins said at a Cricket Australia sponsorship announcement on Wednesday.

“But I’ve not thought that deeply about it yet. It’s still a bit of a wait and see. We’ve got plenty of time, so we’ll map a way back when we get closer. At the moment for the next few weeks it’s pretty light. Not much running and zero bowling,” he had said.

–IANS

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