Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
Sunrisers Hyderabad head coach Daniel Vettori said regular skipper Pat Cummins could return to action in the next fortnight or so in IPL 2026. Cummins has already begun his road to recovery, with the Australian pacer joining the team’s training session in Bengaluru on Wednesday.
Cummins has not played any form of cricket since the Adelaide Test against England last year due to a lumbar stress injury. Vettori said the fast bowler has made excellent progress with his fitness during his time away, with the main challenge being his bowling workloads. He added that a clearer timeline on Cummins’ return should emerge in the next 10 to 12 days.
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“His fitness has been exceptional because he’s been out of the game for an extended period of time, so, he’s had that time to work on that fitness, a real block of work around strength and conditioning. The only challenge for him was the bowling loads,” Vettori said in a press conference on Friday.
“So once he got the all clear from Cricket Australia to build those bowling loads, it’s obviously a bit of a painstaking process to get the lungs up to where he feels confident and strong about bowling. Hopefully, we can get a definitive timeline, probably in the next 10-12 days around when he can return to play,” Vettori added.
‘ISHAN KISHAN INCREDIBLE EXCITED’
Despite Cummins’ absence, Vettori sounded confident about SRH’s bowling attack. The former New Zealand all-rounder also backed Ishan Kishan to lead the side from the front while Cummins remains unavailable for the first few matches.
“It’s always a challenge when you take out that integral part of your team’s captain and fast bowler but I think we’ve got suitable replacements and I know Ishan is incredibly excited about the captain of the team and we can lean on Pat the whole time until he’s actually able to play,” Vettori added.
The Sunrisers will get their campaign underway on Saturday, March 28 against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in Bengaluru. The Orange Army will be looking to bounce back after missing out on a playoff spot last season.
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SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
