• Source:JND
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Australia somehow managed to retain the Ashes after the final day of the fourth Test was completely washed out due to rain in Manchester on Sunday.

The head coach Andrew McDonald has turned down the possibility of Pat Cummins stepping down as test captain after the ongoing Ashes series. Cummins faced his most tough challenge against England since taking over the captaincy role in October.

 

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The pace bowler hasn't been satisfied with his own performances despite being the second-highest wicket-taker in the series so far with 16 wickets.

"What I would say is leadership takes on all different shapes and forms and we're living and dying in the world of tactics only," the coach McDonald told reporters.

"I think it's fair and reasonable to critique some of the execution and tactics that we implemented but to go as far as suggesting that the captain resigns post-series, I think it would be far-fetched. "There are opinions that we respect and there are opinions that we don't."

Cummins looked clueless against the attacking approach of the hosts, especially against the mouth-watering display from Zak Crawley and Jonny Bairstow, while his short-pitched bowling ploy failed against England's aggressive 'Bazball' approach.

When asked if Cummins had become a soft target, McDonald said, "We're all working for the Australian cricket team together. It should never really come down to Pat as an individual but, unfortunately, as a captain, sometimes you wear that."

The Aussie captain himself has denied that the responsibility of captaincy has affected his own performance on the field.

 

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"I don't think (that was an issue)," Cummins had said after the draw. "It was just execution, I let through more boundaries than I normally do. Probably just one or two bad balls an over."

The pace bowler looked satisfied after retaining the urn but is keen on making it special with a win at The Oval in the fifth and final Test of the series.