Australia coach Andrew McDonald said that captain Pat Cummins is likely to miss the ICC Men's Champions Trophy due to his ongoing ankle issue. He also pointed out that Steve Smith and Travis Head are the main contenders to take over the captaincy. On top of that, McDonald mentioned that Josh Hazlewood is facing challenges in getting fit in time for the tournament.

Pat Cummins missed the Sri Lanka Test tour to be with his family for the birth of his second child. On top of that, he’s been struggling with an ankle issue that got worse after a demanding workload during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Australia’s ODI players who aren’t part of the Test squad are set to fly out to Sri Lanka on Thursday. However, McDonald revealed on Wednesday that it’s looking unlikely that Pat Cummins will be part of the squad for the Champions Trophy.

Pat Cummins still hasn’t been able to bowl, so it looks really unlikely that he’ll be fit for the upcoming matches. That means the team will need to find a new captain. McDonald shared with SEN, “We’ve been having discussions with Steve Smith and Travis Head as we build our Champions Trophy squad . They’re the two we’re looking at for the Captaincy role.” 

🚨 PAT CUMMINS SET TO MISS 2025 CHAMPIONS TROPHY. 🚨

- Steven Smith or Travis Head could lead Australia. (Espncricinfo). pic.twitter.com/E1Zi8dpwca

— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) February 5, 2025

He continued, “Steve’s done a fantastic job in the first Test, and he’s had plenty of success in one day internationals too, so it’s between those two.” It’s a shame about Pat, but McDonald also mentioned that Josh Hazlewood is battling a hip issue. After missing parts of the series against India and Sri Lanka due to side  injuries, Hazlewood is still working on his fitness. They’re expecting more medical updates soon.

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With both Cummins and Hazlewood unavailable, it opens the door for Sean Abbott to return to the ODI squad. He had missed out on the final Champions Trophy selection due to his recent form, but now he’s back in the picture. Spencer Johnson is also in the mix, as he was initially set to travel to Sri Lanka as a backup for the ODI squad.Australia's selectors are in for a bit of a challenge when it comes to picking the XI for the first ODI against Sri Lanka on February 12. With just one travel day between the end of the second Test and the first ODI, it’s a tight turnaround. ODI squad members like Head, Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis, Alex Carey, and Mitchell Starc are all playing in the Test match. However, if the Test ends quickly on a pitch that looks drier than the previous one, they could get a bit of extra time to rest and recover before the ODI.