LONDON: The culture inside the Australian Test cricket squad may have changed since Tim Paine took over the captaincy following the ball-tampering scandal last year in South Africa, but it has not blunted their competitiveness says pace bowler Pat Cummins.

The 26-year-old joint vice-captain — who took himself off to France for a break following the World Cup semi-final loss to eventual champions England this month — told The Guardian that Paine’s arrival in the wake of the scandal had forced a rethink about their approach to the game.

Former captain Steve Smith and his then deputy David Warner were both given 12-month suspensions by Cricket Australia, with opening batsman Cameron Bancroft — who applied sandpaper to the ball while in the field during a Test with South Africa in Cape Town — banned for nine months.

They are all back in the squad for the five-Test Ashes series which gets underway at Edgbaston from Thursday with the tourists bidding to not only retain the Ashes but also win their first series in England since the Steve Waugh-led squad won 4-1 in 2001..

“It’s probably the first time where we’ve really had to sit back and think about how we wanted to play,” said Cum­m­ins about when Paine took over. “For me personally, going to university [he has a Business degree] or having a few pre-seasons trying to recover from injury, it’s just knowing that you can’t judge yourself on purely cricket, because if you do then you’re forever riding this rollercoaster.

“Definitely taking a step back gives you time to actually think.”

Cummins, who has rebounded from several years of persistent injuries to be key to the Australian attack, said people who mistook that for the team going soft would be lulling themselves into a false sense of security.

“The way I’ve always played is to get into the fight,” he said. “This is a side that’s really hungry with many of them in their first Ashes, their first away Test.

“For me it’s about remembering what I did well last time against England, try to adjust to English conditions, but I just want to really make a mark.

“It doesn’t get much bigger for a Test player than an Ashes, and you never know if it’s going to be your last. So make the most of it.”

Published in Dawn, July 30th, 2019