Australian fast bowler Pat Cummins, whose family home was in the path of the Blue Mountains bushfire inferno, is expected to make a shock return to top-class cricket after it was feared he would miss most of the summer due to a stress fracture.
According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Cummins, whose home was near where fire crews were fighting a tense battle to save the township of Springwood on Wednesday, had a more immediate concern than cricket when he hoped the back burning staged around the home would avert a tragic situation.
Since his Test debut, the university student's progress has been frustrated by a series of back injuries, the latest of which flared up last August and prevented him from playing in the last two domestic summers, the report said.
There were fears he would sit out most of the Ashes summer after Cricket Australia's chief medico, Justin Paoloni, viewed the scans of his lower back upon his return from the Australian A tour of South Africa and Zimbabwe, the report added.
However, Cummins, who was being mentored by the great Dennis Lillee has said that he was on track to play for the Perth Scorchers in the Twenty20 Big Bash League in December.
There was also the chance that, depending on his performances for the Scorchers, he could represent Australia during the three-match T20 series against England, the report further said.
Cummins said that when he gets the green light to bowl in a game, he would definitely be fearless, adding that the recovery is going great and he is confident of playing a huge chunk of the Big Bash League.