Australia captain Pat Cummins is returning to Sydney due to a family illness but will rejoin the team in India for the final two Tests.
The Australians are remaining in Delhi, where they will have a few days to refresh and recover, before flying to Indore to later this week to continue preparations for the third Test starting March 1.
Pat Cummins leads the team off the ground after the loss to India on day three of the second Test.Credit:Getty Images
The early finish to the second Test means there are nine days between games.
Changes are looming to the Australia squad after going down 2-0 and failing in their bid to retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Injured veteran David Warner, the out of favour Ashton Agar and out-of-form Matthew Renshaw could all be heading home.
Spin sensation Todd Murphy is also under an injury cloud due to a sore side, though he was able to bowl in the final innings of the game.
Cricket Australia released a statement on Monday requesting Cummins’ privacy be respected.
“Pat Cummins has flown home for personal reasons due to a serious family illness,” the statement confirmed. “He will return to India later this week to re-join preparations for the third Test in Indore. We ask media to respect his privacy.”
Former Australia captain Michael Clarke questioned Cummins’ field placements when India needed 115 to win in the final innings in Delhi.
“I’m not sure what happened with our tactics,” Clarke said. “We had just 100 runs on the board.
“At one stage, Patty Cummins had four blokes on the boundary. There’s 2½ days left in the Test match. You’re either bowling India out for under a hundred or you’re losing: one or the other.”
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