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One might speculate whether the Australian cricket board intentionally chooses to be opaque about player availability or simply has a deficiency in communications, but yet again, the fitness of players and final team composition must be deduced from the 14-player squad announcement for the second Ashes Test.

Typically, an identical team list would not attract attention, but this time it is, due to the anticipated changes involving both key players, none of which has now eventuated.

Cummins is the surprise for his omission, with the team skipper and pace spearhead deep into his recovery from early signs of a stress fracture. The sole official statement was a brief mention with the team announcement stating that Cummins is scheduled to go to Brisbane to continue his preparations.”

Suggestions from within CA indicate that everything is on track and his healing is proceeding well, with a likely addition to the side soon. Theoretically, Cummins could even join the Brisbane squad in coming days if he and management so choose. However, something the claims doesn’t add up.

Recalling when Cummins’ scans were cleared in October, starting the clock on his buildup to match fitness, all public commentary from the bowler himself and timelines from CA indicated he would just be unavailable for the first Test and was scheduled to train at nearly full tilt with the squad in Perth. Coach Andrew McDonald said, “Cummins will be fit to bowl in Perth, and people will be sitting there questioning why he’s not playing.”

Once Cummins got back to his home city following the team’s raucous two-day win, he was seen bowling in the New South Wales nets without any visible restrictions and, importantly, was training with a pink ball, what one would assume as preparation for the day-night Test.

What prompted the shift, well over a month since he indicated requiring four weeks to build up his workload, and with six days until the first ball in Brisbane? Not to mention, there are eight more days of rest between Brisbane and the third Test. If the latter is Cummins’ destination, it will be over two months since he started training again.

That in itself is fine: prognoses can change, doctors may be cautious, players can be cautious. What’s strange is that during the high-profile Ashes contest in Australia’s calendar, the board officials don’t appear to consider it necessary to provide updates about the skipper’s condition or the evolving status of either.

If care is the priority with the captain, the opposite applies with the opener’s issue. He had muscle spasms in the first Test during two paltry fielding innings, preventing the regular batsman from doing so in the match and from having any influence when he eventually batted. Even if his symptoms have subsided, the fact he’d not experienced them before surely leaves some risk that they might recur in the heat of the next Test.

With Khawaja in the squad suggests he is due to resume opening the batting, even though his replacement scored a historic hundred in Perth. Khawaja wouldn’t be picked as a reserve or to play lower. Once more, there is no official information about this, just the selection.

It isn’t necessary that teams should have to give a whole XI when picking their squad, and strategies may shift. However, certain decisions are clearer than others, and given the way Travis Head’s explosive performance captured public attention, it would cause no issue to confirm where both batsmen are slotted to play. A bit of mystery in sports is a positive, but manufacturing it out of the broadly obvious is unnecessary. If you’re in the business of winning over audiences, communication goes a long way.