After retaining the Ashes urn, Australia national cricket team captain Pat Cummins said the job is not done yet as his focus remains on winning the series.
The fourth Test of the Ashes 2023 at Old Trafford in Manchester ended in a draw after rain washed away the final day. England they were in a dominant position throughout the match and looked set to seal the win. But thanks to rain, Australia was saved and managed to retain the Ashes as the series is currently 2-1 with the final test taking place at The Oval.
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Speaking after the game, Pat Cummins said their focus was on winning the game, but they’re thrilled to retain the Ashes. He said:
“Our preference is to come here and win the Ashes. Not the best of circumstances, but happy to keep it now. What happened today doesn’t really change the way we look at the next game.”
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We weren’t at our best, so we’ll look into it – Pat Cummins
England stuck to their Bazball approach to the match and recorded a whopping 592 runs on the board in the only innings he batted with 6 of the top 7 batsmen scoring over 50 runs. Zak Crawley was the leading scorer for his team as he scored an outstanding 189 runs off 182 balls, with 21 fours and 3 sixes.
Pat Cummins further admitted that they did not play their best cricket in Manchester and praised England for their performance at bat. Pat Cummins said:
“It has been an incredible group, we all arrived here very motivated. It will be a special week at The Oval. England batted very well, we tried a couple of plans but it didn’t work. We weren’t at our best, so we’ll look into it.”
Talking about his physical condition, Pat Cummins said that he feels pretty good. He added that they will enter the final test with only one goal in mind, which is to win it.
“(When asked about his fitness) I feel pretty good, having a rest before this game was good. I probably haven’t bowled much, feeling good. Marnus was fantastic with Marsh yesterday. He has to show the class of him out there. We all show up here to win the series, retaining the Ashes is good, but we are completely focused on winning it.”
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