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Pat Cummins, the Australia captain, refused to apologise and declared he would happily dismiss a batsman in the same manner as Jonny Bairstow was stumped at Lord’s as he doubled down on the flashpoint of the Ashes series so far.
After Brendon McCullum, the England head coach, said that Cummins could come to regret not withdrawing Australia’s appeal to dismiss Bairstow, the Australian said he had no regrets over his side’s actions on Sunday, which triggered international outcry that included both Rishi Sunak and his counterpart Anthony Albanese having their say.
“The team did nothing wrong so we’re all comfortable,” Cummins said on the eve of the third and potentially decisive test at Headingley. “We’ve all moved on. You’ll have to ask me in the future. At the moment I’m really comfortable with it. Maybe down the track.”
Asked whether he would do the same thing again in a test match, Cummins simply replied: “Yep.”
Cummins also defended the integrity of his side, saying Australia had been “outstanding in that regard” at Lord’s. “I think the way our team’s conducted themselves over the last couple of years has been flawless, really. We’ve been fantastic and I think that showed again on day five at Lord’s.
“I think there’s issues that come up every Ashes series where you have the same opinions, English fans think one thing, Australian fans think the opposite. In terms of our players, I think the way they conducted themselves in the Long Room was fantastic. Even the Mitchell Starc decision the night before, the way our boys accepted the decision and moved on from it quickly was really good.”
Australia's Pat Cummins during a press conference at Headingley. Photo / AP
Asked about the spirit of cricket, Cummins said that “I 100 per cent think it’s a real thing. I think at times there’s nuance to it, and everyone might see it a little bit differently. Which is fine, that’s part of it. But absolutely I think it’s one of the beauties of our sport, it’s a gentleman’s sport, you want to maintain respect for the opposition at all times, the umpires, the fans, the game, so I think it’s one of the strengths of our game.”
The test match will be Australia’s first at Headingley since the 2019 Ashes test, when Ben Stokes scored the winning runs by cutting Cummins for four. Cummins said that Australia were braced for reminders of that one-wicket England victory in the days ahead.
“I’ve just walked through the changing room. And the first thing you think of is 2019, which was a tough test match but also a fantastic test match. That day four was crazy. So, mixed emotions I think. I remember at the time first emotions obviously disappointment because the test match has gone away, but you do know it’s one of those moments that’s going to be replayed for a long time and in some regards I felt lucky that I was in the middle of it.
“I remember at the time thinking, if I hang it outside off there might be a chance to nick it. I’ve seen it about 1000 times in the last four years. It was a fantastic test match, and the first two in this series have been fantastic. I’m sure that memory will be brought up quite a bit, just like 2005 was brought up at Edgbaston, but we’ve well and truly moved past that.”
Australia's Cameron Green and teammates celebrate the dismissal of England's Jonny Bairstow. Photo / AP
‘Time to let it go’
Meanwhile, England captain Stokes said that it was time to move on but that England could be inspired by previous Ashes heroics at Headingley as they try to fight back from 2-0 down in the Ashes series.
“It’s just time to let it go and concentrate on the cricket because it’s a very big next three games for both teams coming up,” Stokes said. “The magical thing that would happen this week is for us to win the game and keep the Ashes alive.
“I don’t know what it is about Headingley but you can always look back at certain things which have happened here in an Ashes series. I don’t know why it seems to do that but the moment just happens and something happens. We’ve got some very fond memories here as an England team, I’m sure supporters have got some fond memories as spectators as well – ‘81 and 2019 will probably come up at some point around the ground.”
Stokes admitted that England’s team, first disclosed by Telegraph Sport, was influenced by concerns about how much he could bowl after his 12-over spell on day four at Lord’s.
“I’m not going to lie: that last week sort of took it out of me a little bit. So a big part of what I had to think of is what would be the best team if I wasn’t to bowl a ball in this game in the worst-case scenario? That doesn’t mean I’m not going to bowl but that was a huge part of the thinking about the team that we picked.”
