Pat Cummins on Australia striving to become No. 1 Test team in the world: You’ve got to be winning overseas

Australia won their first Test match against Sri Lanka in the Galle International Stadium by a mammoth margin of 10 wickets. The Pat Cummin-led team continued its rise in the World Test Championship cycle, clinching crucial points in the sub continent, their second overseas tour in the last few months.

Cummins was aided by the batting of Usman Khawaja and Cameron Green and then by the off spin bowling of Nathan Lyon and Travis Head. Lyon entered the list of top 10 wicket-takers in the history of Test cricket, surpassing Indian great Kapil Dev. He now has 436 wickets to his name from 109 Test matches.

After the match, the captain spoke about eking out wins in overseas conditions and the need to be proactive in the subcontinent.

“A couple of new words we’re using about our approach is being proactive and brave. We saw some really clear methods from all the batters. They might have been individually a bit different, but you saw everyone being really proactive and putting pressure back on the bowlers. You’d normally talk about it in one-day or T20 cricket. But I think that’s the style over here that’s needed,” Cummins said after the match.

“Embracing everything about the conditions, that’s been a big one for us. In the past, you can get caught up in conditions that aren’t like Australia, but if you want to be the number one Test team in the world, you’ve got to be winning overseas,” he further added.

“So I think everyone – the experienced guys finding new shots, Mitchell Starc working on the reverse swing, Nathan Lyon coming up with a few new balls. There is so much appetite to learn and be successful on these wickets,” the leader of the pace attack said.

Nathan Lyon’s distinguishable performances continued in the first Test match which made Cummins hail him as one of the all time greats to have played for the country.

“I wouldn’t change Lyon for anyone. He’s gone into the top 10 wicket-takers of all time. And you saw him out there. He’s unplayable for left or right-handers. Sometimes out here, bounce for spinners is spoken about as something that’s not desirable, but he has shown here with that bounce; and he was unplayable,” he said

“His stamina as well – you give him the ball from one end and say see you at the end of the day,” the captain concluded on Lyon.

Australia will be taking on Sri Lanka in the second and the final Test match on 7 July.