Ashes 2023: Pat Cummins similar to Mark Taylor in leadership and captaincy: Jason Gillespie | Cricket News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Former Australia pacer Jason Gillespie lauded Aussie captain Pat Cummins for his on-field tactics, execution and bonhomie with his team-mates. Gillespie, a veteran of 71 Tests, 97 ODIs and 1 T20I, with more than 400 international wickets under his belt, also compared the captaincy style of Cummins with that of Aussie great Mark Taylor.
Interestingly, Cummins was criticised by many for what they felt were’ ‘defensive’ tactics in the initial stages of the first Ashes Test.
“I thought his (Cummins’s) captaincy was fantastic at Edgbaston. I was a little bit critical of the tactics of the defensive fields early in the game, but as the game went on Pat Cummins was very good. He comes across to me as very much a player’s captain. He very much cares for the person, not just the actual game of cricket, being out on the field. It seems it’s a more holistic style of leadership,” Gillespie told TimesofIndia.com in an interview.

Pat Cummins (AFP Photo)
After captaining Australia to a resounding World Test Championship 2021-2023 title, by beating the Rohit Sharma-led India by a huge margin of 209 runs, Cummins led from the front and helped Australia take a 1-0 lead in the ongoing five-match Ashes Test series.
Cummins’ men won the first Ashes Test by 2 wickets and the Australian skipper played a vital role in his team’s win.
The 30-year-old claimed four wickets in the England second innings and then shared a match-winning ninth-wicket partnership with Nathan Lyon in the last hour of the final day to take Australia across the line in Birmingham to leave the Ben Stokes-led side licking their wounds.

Pat Cummins with teammate Nathan Lyon (Getty Images)
Cummins was involved in an unbeaten 55-run stand with Lyon for the ninth wicket.
“He (Cummins) will be very caring off the field. He’ll be checking in with all his players. He’s a very empathetic captain. He has a lot of empathy for his players,” Gillespie further told TimesofIndia.com.
“I compare him favourably with someone like Mark Taylor. Steve Waugh was also very empathetic with players. But yes, if I have to pick one, I’m probably thinking of Mark Taylor. Pat Cummins is similar to Mark Taylor in terms of leadership and captaincy,” Gillespie said.
Australia are currently playing the second Ashes Test at the Lord’s.

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