For most of the day, Pat Cummins under duress held things together. First it was in the face of Joe Root’s early onslaught, one that would have been withering not just for its rate of scoring but the cheerfully insouciant air with which it was carried out. England had piled on 49 runs in 39 balls before Cummins produced magic, the quintessential booming yorker that swung in at Vin Diesel pace and demolished Ollie Pope’s off stump.
Root carried on with Harry Brook, at times making Cummins rejig the field every few balls, while also bowling a seven-over spell to start the day. Despite Brook laying into Nathan Lyon, Cummins backed his spinner and kept enough fielders up, letting Lyon dislodge both batters for 46 each.
So far so good, an on-field reflection of his pre-match words when asked about keeping cool if England reached the boil: “There’s going to be some moments of tension for everyone, which is exciting. You hopefully have a Plan A, Plan B, Plan C, and at times you just go on your gut. There’s going to be high pressure moments but you wouldn’t want to be anywhere else but out there in the middle of it.”
