It’s been quite a summer for Mt Riverview native, Pat Cummins.
Man of the series against Sri Lanka, promoted to vice-captain and now the number two ranked Test bowler in the world.
The latest International Cricket Council rankings show Cummins moving from third to second – jumping ahead of England’s Jimmy Anderson.
He has 878 points, just four behind the number one, South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada.
In the successful two-match series against Sri Lanka, Cummins took 14 wickets at the astonishing average of 7.78.
He was named man of the match for his performance in Brisbane, when he finished with figures of 10-62. In Canberra, he took a back seat to fellow quick Mitchell Starc, who claimed 10 wickets, but he chipped in the 3-15 in the second innings and was named man of the series.
He was also Australia’s joint vice-captain – with batsman Travis Head – for the series.
“I feel like my game’s in a really good place at the moment,” he told the Gazette. “It was great for the team to end the summer with a couple of dominant Test matches with everyone in the side contributing well.
“Great way to bounce back after a tough series against a very good Indian side.”
Cummins will now play one-day cricket, notably the World Cup in the UK in June-July. Then there’s the Ashes, starting in England on August 1.
“Looking forward to the challenge of one-day cricket,” he said. “Then of course the Ashes is going to be huge.”