Pat Cummins has admitted he could skip the 2027 Indian Premier League as Australia prepare for a packed international calendar featuring a Test tour of India, the Ashes and the ODI World Cup.
Cummins, who has captained Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL, said his priority remains Test cricket and Australia’s World Cup campaign. The Australian captain made the comments to the Sydney Morning Herald.
“Something has got to give at some stage next year and it’s not going to be test matches or an ODI World Cup,” Cummins said.
The 33-year-old has been one of SRH’s biggest figures in recent seasons and has earned ₹18.00 crore a year as captain of the franchise. However, Australia’s 2027 schedule has left him considering whether another IPL season can fit into his workload.
Australia are set to play four Tests in India in January and February next year. That will be followed by the 150th anniversary Test against England in Melbourne in March, a full Ashes tour, and the ODI World Cup in southern Africa in October and November.
Cummins said he will not rush the decision and will speak to Sunrisers Hyderabad closer to the tournament.
“I will make a call a lot closer and work with the franchise to see what makes sense. Things can change. I’ve had a couple of injuries pop up, so I don’t really want to lock in anything,” he said.
Cummins puts Tests and World Cup first
Pat Cummins made it clear that Australia commitments will sit above franchise cricket when he makes his final call. “The priorities for me are always the test matches and that ODI World Cup. I dare say if I play all of India, I need some sort of break before a pretty gruelling Ashes series,” he said.
The workload concern is not theoretical. Cummins played only the Adelaide Ashes Test in the last home summer and also skipped the T20 World Cup while managing a back injury. That history has made Australia careful about how they handle their senior fast bowlers.
Cummins also indicated that Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc could be managed during parts of Australia’s home series against New Zealand around the New Year.
“It’s possible. I think we’re fairly open-minded to anything, as we’ve seen over the last couple of years,” Cummins said. “I see a world where we’re potentially winding some bowlers down, even say at the back end of an Indian series if they don’t look like they’re going to play, to give them an extra rest ahead of the Ashes,” he added.
Cummins said the next phase would be demanding but potentially memorable for the Australian group. “It’s going to be a big push the next 18 months or so, but I think we’ll look back on it hopefully and see it as one of the more rewarding periods of our career,” he said.
For SRH, the uncertainty leaves a major question before the next IPL cycle. Cummins has been central to their leadership structure, but Australia’s calendar may now force one of the league’s biggest overseas names to choose rest over franchise cricket.
