Age is just a number, and injury setbacks are merely temporary hurdles for Australia’s golden generation of fast bowling. Despite crossing into their mid-30s and enduring grueling rehabilitation cycles over the past year, the ‘Big Three’ of Australian cricket—Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, and Josh Hazlewood—have no intention of disbanding their legendary partnership anytime soon.
Speaking exclusively to India Today, Australia skipper Pat Cummins made a bold declaration regarding their future, confirming that the trio has locked their sights on a massive calendar that includes next year’s ODI World Cup, the Ashes in England, and the marquee Test tour of India in the 2026-27 winter.
“Yeah, that’s the plan,” Cummins said when asked if the trio would remain intact for at least until the exciting 2027 season.
“We’ve got a big ODI World Cup next year as well, so there’s lots of cricket. I’ll definitely be playing. I know those guys very well — they’ve got no intention of retiring anytime soon. They’re fit and they’ve both been fantastic this IPL. So, fingers crossed, there’s a lot more cricket left in us.”
The longevity of the trio remains the envy of world cricket. Left-arm spearhead Starc, now 36, has carefully managed his workloads, turning up for international assignments as recently as October 2025 and stepping back from T20Is to preserve his body for the longer formats. Meanwhile, Hazlewood (35) and Cummins (33) continue to shoulder all-format burdens, though both had to navigate severe injury layoffs recently.
Cummins missed the first half of IPL 2026 to recover from a severe lumbar bone stress injury that flared up during the West Indies tour last July and sidelined him for most of the Ashes. Similarly, Hazlewood missed the Ashes entirely due to a complex hamstring strain and a secondary Achilles tendon issue. Yet, both have engineered seamless returns to peak fitness in the ongoing IPL, with Hazlewood starring for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Cummins leading the Sunrisers Hyderabad into the playoffs.
IPL or T20 World Cup?
Beyond their individual workloads, Cummins also reflected on the changing tactical landscape of the shortest format. After a relentless onslaught of 250-plus scores at the start of the current T20 cycle, the Australian captain noted a visible, welcome regression back to the mean where bowlers are fighting back.
“It’s probably a bit of both,” Cummins explained, assessing whether the sudden dip in explosive scores was due to tired surfaces or batter fatigue. “You’re getting some used wickets now, and you’re also getting teams for whom playing on a 180-200 wicket probably suits them better than a 250 wicket. I also think bowlers are coming up with different plans, particularly in the first six overs, trying to protect themselves from ball one. The start of the season was ridiculous, so maybe things are just reverting back to the mean a little bit.”
That strategic evolution makes the grueling nature of franchise cricket uniquely demanding. When asked if navigating the relentless two-month schedule of the IPL is tougher than winning a condensed T20 World Cup, the Sunrisers skipper balanced the scales.
“I’m not sure it’s more difficult because it’s the same challenge for every team. But it’s definitely a different challenge,” Cummins concluded. “You’re here for eight or nine weeks, and you’ve got to be consistently good throughout that entire period. They’re both hard. I’m not sure one is harder than the other, but they’re definitely different challenges.”
– Ends
