The Australian skipper has taken over 300 dismissals in 71 appearances with an impressive average.
The Australian selection chief George Bailey has declared that pace spearhead Cummins will be a central figure in the upcoming historic rivalry.
Rumors had circulated that Cummins might be unavailable due to a stress fracture in his back that was still troubling him.
Previous updates from the Australian camp suggested no final decision had been made regarding his involvement, with the extended contest kicking off on 21 November in Perth.
He revealed that Cummins is "building up" and remained hopeful about his chances of taking part.
"We know that the window is narrowing and there are permutations around that, aside from the back issue, but further aspects," the selector added.
"We're encouraged. There's strong faith that he's going to play a key capacity. With luck it's the first Test. If not, we'll adjust."
Injury History
The captain missed Australia's limited-overs series against New Zealand and India last month after scans revealed a lumbar bone stress.
He has a history of spinal problems, with setbacks in several earlier campaigns leading to absences from three Australian summers in four years.
He emphasized he would be ""aggressive" and "take risks" in his rehabilitation process to make the squad for the series.
The selector indicated that there was no confirmation if he had started his bowling workouts as part of his rehabilitation but conceded it was "becoming urgent" for him to be fit for the initial match.
Contingency Plans
Should Cummins not be fit, veteran batsman Smith will assume leadership.
Versatile player Green was excluded lately from the ODI lineup for their one-day international series against the Asian giants as a preventive step because of soreness in his side.
Bailey described it as a "minor" injury and stated that he'll feature in the Sheffield Shield, so will be "ideally positioned to be ready to bowl."
"We put so much time has gone into building out the plan for him to participate for the first Test as an dual-role player," the selector detailed.
"He was only going to play the first two ODIs regardless. How he handles the bat in limited-overs, should it hinder progress for another day, we just made the decision to approach this more conservatively."
Match Calendar
The Historic Rivalry
21 November 2025 - 7 January 2026
