“I’ve been in this job two years now, you’ve got to have a thick skin”, Pat Cummins on his captaincy criticism.

Australia’s captain, Pat Cummins, remains unperturbed by doubts surrounding his leadership during the ongoing Ashes 2023 series. While Australia started the tour strongly, winning the World Test Championship final against India and two matches against England, they have struggled to maintain consistency, leading to criticism of Cummins’ captaincy skills.

However, Cummins stated that he has not paid much attention to the criticism directed towards him over the past week, particularly after Australia’s struggles in the fourth Test in Manchester. Having developed a thick skin over the years, he mentioned that external opinions no longer affect him. Despite facing scrutiny, Cummins firmly believes in his ability to lead the national team effectively.

Cummins said

“I honestly haven’t read anything. A few things have come across my desk from the boys having a laugh. I’ve been in this job two years now, and you learn pretty quickly that you’ve got to have a thick skin.It’s such a great bunch of players and staff here that we all know what everyone is about and how we are going to go about it, and for me, that’s more important than anything else. I’m not going to please everyone and everyone’s got opinions, but they aren’t facts, they’re opinions.”

Cummins also addressed on saying “I think it does have a shelf life. I won’t put a date on it, I’ve got to get there first. I feel like every Test match I learn quite a bit, you just get exposed to more things with each game. I’m loving working with this team and the staff. Enjoying it at the moment, we’ll see what the future holds. I feel like with each game I’m getting better and I think there’s a fair bit more left in me.”