Ashes 2023: Damien Fleming wants Pat Cummins to keep captaining Aus in Tests

LONDON: With questions surrounding Pat Cummins' work load on being Australia’s fast-bowling spearhead and as well as the captain, former cricketer Damien Fleming has backed him to continue being the skipper of the team.

"There's a finishing line, and only he'll know, I want him to keep doing it (captaining). I don't know who it goes to, Steve Smith is already questioning how long he'll play for, Travis Head could be a possible option as he has captained South Australia since a young age."

I think 3-4 years is ideal for an Australian captain and in an ideal world, Cummins does it for a couple of years and looks to retain the Test championship," said Fleming on SEN Radio.

Fleming believes Cummins needs more help from Steve Smith in the field as a captain when Australia is bowling.

"I saw signs at Headingley that I didn’t like and that was Steve Smith fielding at backward square leg. Steve Smith is helping on the field and that has to happen, but Cummins was bowling and I’m going okay well who’s setting the field then? Smith can’t field at backward square leg if he’s the fielding captain," he said.

With Cummins looking out of sorts in tactics on some occasions, Fleming thinks the set game plan from the coaching staff, led by head coach Andrew McDonald is not of great help for Australia.

"Off field, Andrew McDonald and the coaching staff have set most of their plans pre match and that has negative connotations. Cricket's always about weighing up your game plan against what the batting is doing at that specific moment and how the pitch is playing," he said.

“The field for me at Old Trafford just went to a set plan that had already gone past them, England were batting in a different way and the pitch was flatter than they (Australia) expected," he added.

Looking forward to the fifth Test at The Oval starting from Thursday, Fleming opined Australia have it in them to make the series scoreline 3-1 in their favour.

"Bazball has had this narrative where they thought they were one nil up after the first Test match and two nil up after the second.

That might be important for their group, to keep that positive message going but if you look at it in a black and white way, we won the first two Tests and we’ve retained the Ashes. We’re a chance to win 3-1 and then there is no argument," Fleming said.