SYDNEY — Fast bowler Pat Cummins has been ruled out of the upcoming tour of Bangladesh due to a stress fracture in his back, the second of his young career, Cricket Australia said Thursday. All-rounder James Faulkner will replace Cummins, who suffered lower back pain during the last one-day match against England earlier this month. A scan Wednesday showed up a new early stage lumbar bone stress fracture on the 22-year-old. He has been plagued by injury, including a back stress fracture that ruled him out of the entire 2012-13 southern summer. Cummins returned to first-class cricket with Australia A in July 2013, but suffered a recurrence of the injury and missed most of the 2013-14 domestic season. Part of the Ashes squad this year, he played his only Test in South Africa nearly four years ago. Physiotherapist David Beakley said Cummins will go into a lengthy rehabilitation program. “This is really unfortunate for Pat... he is a young bowler with a bright future for Australia and we were really pleased with how he bowled in the UK,” said chairman of the selectors Rod Marsh. Faulkner, 25, who missed the ODI series in England after he was banned for drink-driving in Manchester in July, is a regular in Australia's limited-overs side. Cummins joins David Warner on the sidelines, the opening batsman ruled out of Bangladesh weeks ago after breaking a thumb during the ODI series in England. Faulkner is back in the frame two years after his first and only Test against England, a dead rubber in the 2013 Ashes at The Oval in which he took six wickets. Man-of-the-match in Australia's victorious World Cup final against New Zealand in March, the 25-year-old will be eager to re-ignite his international career after being booted out of the one-day team in July for being caught drink-driving in England. “James comes back into the Australia Test side having only played the one Test, but he is an exciting young bowler who could be very handy in the conditions we are likely to see in Bangladesh,” Marsh said. Bangladesh hosts Australia for the first Test from Oct. 9-13 in Chittagong and the second from Oct. 17-21 in Dhaka. — Agencies
