Pat Cummins mulls skipping next IPL because of heavy Australia workload

Sunrisers Hyderabad skipper Pat Cummins has indicated that he might skip next IPL season because of heavy Australia workload. Cummins said the Ashes against England and the ODI World Cup will be on top of his priority list in 2027.

Cummins had a decent run in IPL 2026, leading the Orange Army to the playoffs after taking over the captaincy baton from Ishan Kishan in the second phase of the tournament. The Australian had not played in the first half of the tournament as he was recovering from a back injury.

Cummins scalped eight wickets in as many matches at an average of 38.37 and an economy rate of 9.59 in IPL 2026. 

“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 told the Sydney Morning Herald on Wednesday.

“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.

“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.”

The Australian skipper revealed the experienced pace duo of Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood could be rested for a part of the home series against New Zealand, which is scheduled 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 added.

“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.

“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.”