As Australia prepare to face South Africa in the 2025 World Test Championship (WTC) final at Lord’s, captain Pat Cummins has already etched his name among the greats of Australian cricket leadership. With a legacy built on major ICC titles and historic series wins, Cummins recently reflected on his proudest moment as skipper, a revelation that offers insight into the mindset driving Australia’s quest for back-to-back WTC crowns.
Pat Cummins reveals about his pinnacle moment of captaincy
Despite leading Australia to a commanding victory in the 2023 WTC final against India at The Oval, Cummins singles out the 2023 ODI World Cup triumph in India as his most cherished accomplishment.
“The ODI World Cup of 2023 is going to be hard to top, that’s number one for me,” Cummins stated to ICC in an interview, highlighting the magnitude of winning cricket’s most coveted limited-overs prize on Indian soil, where Australia entered the final as underdogs. The six-wicket win in Ahmedabad, against a dominant Indian side and a fervent home crowd, stands as a defining achievement in his captaincy.
Cummins also placed immense value on the WTC mace, acknowledging its significance as a symbol of sustained excellence in Test cricket.
“I do believe the (World Test Championship) mace is just below that in terms of you’re up against every other team in the world and you’ve been successful for a couple of years to make the final, so the mace means a lot,” the Australia’s pace-ace added.
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Cummins explains the reason behind Australia’s dominance in world cricket over the years
The Australian captain Cummins further credited his team’s success to the collective strength and adaptability of the squad.
“It takes a whole army really, there’s been 15-plus players who have played in (the team) but the staff as well who worked hard over that period. We’ve had a really good few years as a Test side. We’ve been No.1 for a long time, but to actually have one, hopefully two trophies to show for this era as well, that would be really nice,” Cummins concluded, emphasizing the importance of depth and unity.
Cummins’ leadership has coincided with a golden era for Australian cricket. Since taking over as captain in 2021, he has guided the team to a historic Border-Gavaskar Trophy win against India, a WTC title, and an ODI World Cup victory, while also closing in on several personal and team records. Under his stewardship, Australia have remained at the top of the Test rankings and have cultivated a culture of trust and composure, attributes Cummins believes are key to their recent successes. As Australia prepare to take on South Africa in the WTC final, Cummins and his team have the chance to cement their legacy with a second consecutive Test mace. For the captain, the journey is as significant as the silverware.
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