Australia Test captain Pat Cummins says there are no cowards in the team in light of Justin Langer's recent comments following his acrimonious exit as coach earlier this year.

Cummins, speaking ahead of the first Test against the West Indies that starts in Perth on Wednesday, insisted there was no "ill will" towards Langer.

Langer criticised anonymous "cowards" who leaked information against him during his time as Australia coach, when speaking to the Back Chat podcast which was released last week.

The ex-Australian opener, who ultimately resigned from the role in February after only being offered a short-term extension, had tried to backtrack from those comments, stating the players were "like my younger brothers".

Cummins moved to defend his teammates on Tuesday but reiterated there were no hard feelings with Langer.

"There's no cowards in an Australian cricket team, not ever," Cummins told reporters. "I'd probably never disclose private conversations.

"I think it's disappointing sometimes the focus gets drawn to off-field issues but it hasn't really affected our team."

Cummins added: "I think there's no ill will to what he was trying to do and he clarified afterwards.

"I think he had a think about it and clarified it, so thank him for that. But we're really proud of the last 12 months, how we've fronted up, the way we've played, the way we've conducted ourselves. Players can certainly hold their heads high."

Cummins confirmed no surprises in the side's XI for the first Test with fast bowler Scott Boland and opening batsman Marcus Harris to be the two players to miss out from Australia's 13-man squad.

"To be honest it is the most stable team I have played in ever," Cummins said. "You could probably have picked the side 12 months ago, I feel like we are in a good spot.

"Everyone has done well to get them fit and firing for this series and we’re in a really good place. Easy decision."

Justin Langer has rubbished talk of a rift between himself and the Australia team as he likened the players to "younger brothers".

Langer stepped down in February after overseeing Australia's first T20 World Cup triumph and an Ashes hammering of England on home soil.

The former opener has been back in the spotlight following his comments on the Back Chat podcast, accusing sources who leaked stories to the media during his reign of being "cowards" with agendas.

Langer also bemoaned a lack of honest feedback given by players while he was in charge of the team.

Cricket Australia chief executive Nick Hockley responded by expressing his disappointment with Langer for "unfairly criticising" the players.

The ex-Australia batter had his say once again in a West Australian column, stating he has not fallen out with the players.

"This rubbish dialogue of me fighting with the current team must stop. Simply because it is not true," Langer wrote.

"They are my friends. They are like my younger brothers. Anything said to the contrary is false.

"For four years we drank, ate, celebrated, strategised and lived together. We fought back from 'sandpaper gate' and Covid together and we won the T20 World Cup and Ashes together."

Langer made it clear he has no issue with captain Pat Cummins.

"For the record, I am a great admirer of Pat Cummins. Not only is he an outstanding cricketer but he is also a very good human being," he said.

"Would I have liked him to have backed me more publicly towards the end of my time as coach? Of course, I would. Who wouldn't?"

He added: "Was it always perfect? No, it wasn't? What business, what team is always perfect?

"I have never met a leader who is every single person's cup of tea. Again, that's life.

"And I accept my four years with the team had to come to an end. It's just a shame it happened like it did. But now, it's time to move on."

The celebratory drinks have barely been consumed and England's World Cup heroes are having to put the pads on again.

Just five days after beating Pakistan to win the T20 World Cup in Melbourne, Jos Buttler will lead his team out at the Adelaide Oval on Thursday to take on Australia in the first of three one-day internationals.

The tourists have not been shy in pointing out the relentlessness of the cricket schedule, with Moeen Ali calling it "horrible", while coach Matthew Mott added "it's not ideal".

However, while Buttler agrees with the sentiment, the England skipper has no doubts that playing against the old enemy will be more than enough motivation for them.

"It's tough, I think, absolutely. But we just get on with it," he told reporters. "It is a fast turnaround. There's no point hiding away that it will be a challenge for us, having had such a high a few days ago.

"Once you get over the line and you're playing against Australia, I'm sure those competitive juices will get going."

With the 50-over World Cup in India just 11 months away, both teams need to be thinking about their preparations already, with Australia having a point to prove after an insipid defence of their T20 title in their own country.

The hosts' loss against New Zealand in their opener and an inability to post a sufficient run rate in other games ultimately saw them crash out at the Super 12 stage, and watching England win it all at the MCG must have made it a more bitter pill to swallow. 

Pat Cummins leads the team having taken over the captaincy from Aaron Finch, and has reason to be confident with a very strong side selected and a good recent record in the 50-over format.

Australia beat England 2-1 in their most recent ODI series in September 2020, and have won their past four ODI series at home; their last home series defeat coming against India in January 2019.

They will hope to take advantage of a tired England, though will have to be wary of a team that seems to be finding its feet in limited overs cricket again under Mott and Buttler.

Performing at the death

Death overs are often where games are won and lost, and this could be where Australia come into their own. Cummins has a bowling dot ball percentage of 57 per cent during the last 10 overs in men's ODIs in 2022, with only Afghanistan trio Mohammad Nabi (67 per cent), Yamin Ahmadzai (60 per cent) and Rashid Khan (58 per cent) having a better rate among players from Test-playing countries (minimum of five overs bowled).

In addition, Cameron Green has a bowling average of 3.2 during these death overs (41st-50th) in 2022, the best of any player from a Test-playing country (minimum of two overs bowled).

Roy returns seeking run milestone

One England player with added motivation will be Jason Roy, who was overlooked for Alex Hales at the T20 World Cup.

Roy is just 46 runs away from becoming the 12th player to score 4,000 for England in men's ODIs; if he achieves the milestone in Adelaide, his 102nd in the format, he will become the second-fastest England player to reach it after Joe Root (91 innings).

Sunrisers Hyderabad have released captain Kane Williamson on the back of a poor 2022 Indian Premier League season.

The New Zealand skipper scored just 216 runs from 13 innings at an average of 19.64 in the IPL this year.

Sunrisers on Tuesday announced that Williamson has not been retained by the franchise, who finished eighth last season.

Nicholas Pooran and Sean Abbott are among the other players who have not been kept on by Hyderabad.

It was also the end of an era for Mumbai Indians, with Kieron Pollard calling time on his IPL playing days and taking over as the franchise's batting coach.

Kolkata Knight Riders will have to do without Pat Cummins, Alex Hales and Sam Billings after the overseas trio opted out of the 2023 tournament.

Dwayne Bravo and Chris Jordan were among the players on the Chennai Super Kings' list of released players, while Jason Holder will not feature for Lucknow Super Giants.

Black Caps duo Daryl Mitchell and Jimmy Neesham will not return to Rajasthan Royals, while the same goes for South Africa batter Rassie Van Der Dussen.

Travis Head will open for Australia when Pat Cummins starts his reign as ODI captain in a three-match series against world champions England.

Head will partner David Warner at the top of the order after former skipper Aaron Finch retired from the 50-over format.

Chairman of selectors George Bailey said: "Travis Head returns in place of Aaron Finch having played well in Pakistan and Sri Lanka earlier in the year.

"He has demonstrated flexibility in the types of roles he can play in our ODI line-up."

Australia were knocked out of the T20 World Cup on home soil last weekend when England beat Sri Lanka to deny the holders a semi-final spot.

They will step up their preparations for the ODI World Cup in India next year with a series against Jos Buttler's side that gets under way at Adelaide Oval on Thursday, with Cummins leading the side for the first time since replacing Finch.

The selectors also on Tuesday named a 13-man squad for Tests versus West Indies, the first of which starts at Perth Stadium on November 30.

Opener Marcus Harris returns after a missing a historic series win in Pakistan and a drawn series against Sri Lanka.

Bailey said: "Marcus Harris retains his place after continuing to perform for Gloucestershire in the English County competition and a strong start to the Marsh Sheffield Shield season.

"After some larger squads for the subcontinent tours over the winter, we have returned to a very similar squad to that which performed strongly last summer in comprehensively winning the Ashes."

Australia ODI squad to face England: Pat Cummins (captain), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, David Warner, Adam Zampa

Australia Test squad to face West Indies: Pat Cummins (captain), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, David Warner

Australia have made Pat Cummins their 27th one-day international captain.

Cummins already captains the nation's Test side and will now double up on leadership duties after replacing Aaron Finch as ODI skipper.

Finch retired from the format last month and fast bowler Cummins acknowledged he would be a tough act to follow.

"I have thoroughly enjoyed playing under Finchy and have learnt an enormous amount from his leadership," Cummins said.

"They are significant shoes to fill, although we are extremely fortunate to have a one-day squad with a huge amount of experience."

There had been reports that David Warner could see his lifetime leadership ban ended and he would assume the role, but this announcement puts an end to that speculation.

A proposed amendment to Cricket Australia's integrity code would have paved the way for Warner to take on the job, four years on from his involvement in a ball-tampering scandal.

However, it will be Cummins who leads the side when Australia take on England in a three-match series in November.

A half-century knock from Dawid Malan steered England to an eight-run victory in their latest T20 World Cup warm-up against Australia on Wednesday.

The Yorkshire top-order batsman posted a superb 82 off 49 balls, and combined with Moeen Ali for a fifth-wicket stand of 92 at Canberra's Manuka Oval against the world champions for a total of 178-7.

The hosts looked to threaten a successful chase throughout, with Mitchell Marsh (45) forming the bedrock of their pursuit, ably supplanted by Tim David (40) following his dismissal.

Pat Cummins supplied a late burst of pyrotechnics too, smashing a six at the start of the final over into the scoreboard to set up a nerve-jangling last act.

But Sam Curran's taut bowling, with figures of 3-25, ultimately kept any resistance at bay, to make it two wins from two for the tourists ahead of this month's tournament as Australia finished with 170-6.

Victory hands England the three-match series, with a dead rubber third encounter to come on October 14, before they play their last warm-up against Pakistan on October 17.

Curran doubles down

Having bowled the final over in the first T20I to keep Australia out at the death, it was more of the same from the Surrey left-hander, who dismissed Marcus Stonis, Glenn Maxwell and David.

If there is any doubt about his position now, it looks to have been mostly eradicated, with the 24-year-old likely to make the cut for their opener against Afghanistan on October 22.

Finch reinforces position

Back at the top of the order after Cameron Green partnered David Warner against the West Indies, Australia captain Aaron Finch appears to not be moving from his spot now.

The 35-year-old played his part in claiming the T20 World Cup last year and will do so again from his preferred position, despite a lacklustre 13 off as many balls.

Australia look poised to hand Glenn Maxwell a shock return to Test cricket, with the all-rounder in contention to provide additional spin against Sri Lanka in Galle.

The 33-year-old has not played the long-form game for his country since he featured in the 2017 tour of Bangladesh, instead carving out his place in the white-ball sides.

That has included success in both ODI and T20 formats, with Maxwell a member of the Australia squad that won the T20 World Cup last November, two years on from a semi-final finish at the Cricket World Cup.

But after spin accounted for the majority of wickets in the first Test last week, captain Pat Cummins has indicated the tourists may switch to selecting a single frontline fast bowler for the second and final match.

That would likely see Mitchell Starc drop out, given Cameron Green could be utilised as a pace option, and would open the door for Maxwell, who has seven Test caps, to make a remarkable return to the side.

"He'd play as a spinning all-rounder at number eight," Cummins said. "I thought he was just about the pick of the bowlers in the one-day series, he was excellent. You can easily get 15 or 20 overs out of him.

"If the wicket plays lots of tricks, the batting will be the area where you have to find those 20 or 30 runs somewhere. Last week we didn't need two quicks, but Mitchell Starc's class so we'll wait and see."

Maxwell was a late call-up to cover for the injured Travis Head following Australia's white-ball series against Sri Lanka, and looked otherwise set to miss out following the latter's recovery.

The lack of senior red-ball cricket will not be an issue for Cummins though, who feels that if selected, Maxwell could bring great value towards the tail of the middle order.

"It's pretty different first-class cricket here to what you might experience in the Sheffield Shield," Cummins said. "It's a different pace, the wickets are so different.

"It might not be grinding out a hundred, but a quickfire 30 or 40 would be just as valuable."

The second Test starts on Friday. Australia won the first match by 10 wickets.

Pat Cummins was delighted with Australia's "brave" approach after they thrashed Sri Lanka by 10 wickets on day three of the first Test.

The tourists took a first-innings lead of 109 at the Galle International Stadium on Friday before bowling Sri Lanka out for only 113.

Nathan Lyon took 4-31 after claiming a five-wicket haul in the first innings, and part-time spinner Travis Head, who had never taken a Test wicket, claimed stunning figures of 4-10 as Sri Lanka folded.

Mitchell Swepson took the other two wickets, and after being set only five runs to take a 1-0 lead in the two-match series, David Warner hit Ramesh Mendis for four and then six inside the first over to seal an emphatic victory.

Australia captain Cummins said: "A couple of new words we're using about our approach is about being proactive and being brave.

"We saw some really clear methods from all the batters. They might have been individually a bit different, but you saw everyone being really proactive and putting pressure back on the bowlers. It's something you'd normally talk about in one-day cricket or T20 cricket. But I think that's the style over here that's needed."

He added: "I think it's part of the environment that we are trying to create. Failure is absolutely okay, as long as you are failing in a way you are happy to be."

The paceman lavished praise on spinner Lyon, who moved into the top 10 on the list of all-time leading Test wicket-takers by taking his tally to 436.

"I wouldn't change Lyon for anyone," Cummins said. "He's gone into the top 10 wicket-takers of all time. You saw him out there. He's unplayable for left or right-handers.

"Sometimes out here, bounce for spinners is spoken about [as] something that's not desirable, but he showed here with that bounce he was unplayable. His stamina as well – you give him the ball from one end and say see you at the end of the day."

Pat Cummins is excited to have the "luxury" of being able to call upon Mitchell Swepson in the first Test against Sri Lanka.

Australia captain Cummins has confirmed leg-spinner Swepson will play when the two-match series gets under way at the Galle International Stadium on Wednesday.

Swepson made his debut in the longest format during the series victory in Pakistan in March, taking two wickets in as many matches.

With Ashton Agar ruled out due to side strain and Jon Holland nursing a finger injury, the 28-year-old will get another opportunity in a Test that will be dedicated to the late, great Shane Warne four months after he tragically passed away.

Skipper Cummins said: "We're really happy with Swepo. He is bowling beautifully and really ready for this one.

"These conditions … it's quite different to what we experience in Australia. That's the challenge of trying to win overseas.

"A lot of our preparation work has been around trusting our own methods. We might go about it a little bit differently to how Sri Lanka will."

The paceman added: "I think his role here might be slightly different as well. Pakistan we knew was going to be a slow grind and I thought he did his job despite not taking the wickets he would like. He was a really important cog in that bowling engine.

"It's always exciting having a leggie in the side as a captain. It feels like a real luxury to throw him the ball and see him go about it."

Glenn Maxwell could provide another spin option along with first-choice tweaker Nathan Lyon if Travis Head misses out with a hamstring injury.

If World Test Championship leaders Australia take a 1-0 lead in their quest to win the Warne-Muralidaran Trophy, it will be their 400th Test victory. However, Sri Lanka have won each of their past three Tests against Australia on home soil.

Sri Lanka beat Bangladesh 1-0 away from home in their last Test series under new head coach Chris Silverwood.

Sri Lanka looking to put Australia in a spin

Captain Dimuth Karunaratne suggested Sri Lanka will select three spinners, with the uncapped Jeffrey Vandersay called up after impressing in a 3-2 ODI series win over Australia.

Lasith Embuldeniya, Praveen Jayawickrama and Ramesh Mendis are the other tweakers in the squad.

Sri Lanka have won eight of their past 12 Tests at Galle International Stadium, including the previous two.

Landmark Test for in-form Khawaja 

Usman Khawaja has had a new lease of life since he was recalled during the 4-0 Ashes hammering of England.

The left-handed batter is set to play in his 50th Test in Galle on the back of an outstanding series in Pakistan - scoring two centuries and making 97 in the first Test.

Khawaja has an average of just 28.4 against Sri Lanka – his second lowest against any team he's played more than one Test against. 

The Delhi Capitals put in their best performance of the season with bat and ball to secure a comfortable 44-run win against top of the table Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League.

The Capitals made a strong start, reaching 148-1 within 13 overs after Prithvi Shaw and David Warner had caused some damage, with Rishabh Pant continuing the good work after Shaw fell for 51.

However, a minor batting collapse saw them slip to 166-5, with Warner eventually out for 61 after he could only find Ajinkya Rahane on the boundary off the bowling of Umesh Yadav (1-48).

Axar Patel (22 not out) and Shardul Thakur (29 not out) rescued the innings, though, smashing an additional 49 to set the Knight Riders an imposing total of 216 for victory.

Venkatesh Iyer looked to be setting the tone at the start of Kolkata's reply, hitting 18 from eight balls before falling to Khaleel Ahmed (3-25), who also took the wicket of Rahane (8) shortly after.

Shreyas Iyer (54) and Nitish Rana (30) tried to build a foundation for the chase, before both fell in the 12th and 13th overs.

Sam Billings could only manage 15 before hitting Ahmed to Lalit Yadav, before Kuldeep Yadav (4-35) took three wickets in his last four balls to extinguish any hope for the Knight Riders, who were eventually all out for 171.

Warner and Shardul lead the way

After making just four from 12 balls in his first game of the IPL season against the Lucknow Super Giants, Warner found his form here as he hit 61 from 45 balls, including six fours and two sixes.

Shardul also plundered an important 29 from 11, hitting Pat Cummins for six off the last ball, one of three maximums he managed in his short time at the crease, before also going on to take 2-30 with the ball.

Cummins struggles continue

It has not been the start to his IPL season that Cummins will have hoped for with the ball, having conceded 100 runs from eight overs so far.

The Australia Test captain took 2-49 last time out against Mumbai Indians, but only managed 0-51 from his four overs here, being hit for three sixes.

Pat Cummins blasted an astonishing record-equalling half-century to secure a five-wicket Indian Premier League win for Kolkata Knight Riders over Mumbai Indians.

The Indians posted 161-4 at Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune, Suryakumar Yadav top scoring with 52 off 36 balls with support from Tilak Varma (38 not out) and Kieron Pollard (22no).

Mumbai looked to be on course for their first win of the tournament when KKR were 101-5 in the 14th over, but Australia Test captain Cummins had other ideas.

The paceman matched KL Rahul's record for the fastest IPL half-century from 14 balls and put the Knight Riders top by hitting Daniel Sams for six to seal victory with four overs to spare, Venkatesh Iyer also playing a big hand with an unbeaten 50.

Pat Cummins says popular interim head coach Andrew McDonald must take great credit for the "huge part" he played in Australia's 1-0 Test series win in Pakistan.

McDonald was placed in temporary charge following Justin Langer's shock resignation last month.

The 40-year-old oversaw Australia's first overseas Test series triumph in six years, Nathan Lyon taking 5-83 and Cummins 3-23 on the final day to secure a 115-run victory at Gaddafi Stadium.

McDonald is the favourite to land the role on a permanent basis and captain Cummins is full of praise for the former all-rounder.

Asked about the job McDonald has done, he said: "Fantastic. Not unexpected. He's a great operator.

"The boys absolutely love him. Very diligent, very thorough, strategic, very organised. He's a huge part of this tour win."

Cummins would clearly welcome a decision for McDonald to stay on.

The paceman added: "His preparation, and all the support staff's. It's not just the 11 players who walk out; we've got a squad of 30-odd people who have been working so hard this month, and it's also important.

"I've said before it's not my place to employ the coach, but Ronnie [McDonald] has been fantastic."

Pat Cummins says every member of the Australia side proved they can thrive in Asian conditions after they sealed a 1-0 Test series win over Pakistan.

Nathan Lyon took 5-83 and outstanding captain Cummins claimed 3-23 as the tourists won by 115 runs on the final day at Gaddafi Stadium to claim the Benaud-Qadir Trophy.

Both bowling attacks were made to toil on flat pitches throughout the three-match series in Australia's first tour of Pakistan since 1998.

Pakistan were unable to avoid defeat under pressure in Lahore, though, collapsing from 165-3 to 235 all out.

Test Championship leaders Australia face Sri Lanka in a two-match series in July and travel to India next year.

Man of the match Cummins says they will take huge confidence from beating Pakistan in their own backyard when they take on those challenges.

"It's probably potentially not as spinning conditions here as we might get in Sri Lanka," said the paceman.

"But I think in the past Asian tours that I've been on, there's a lot of talk when we leave Australia that we've got to change everything about our game to succeed over here.

"This is a good lesson that the basics of batting or bowling that make you a good player in Australia can hold up over here. If anything, I think it's reaffirmed that our games will hold up."

The number one Test bowler in the world added: "The amount of confidence we'll get out of winning over here, not just as a team but so many individuals.

"Every individual had their moment and has shown that their game stands up to Asian conditions. So it's huge for Sri Lanka later in the year, India next year. That's awesome."

For the time being, the tourists will savour a richly deserved series win.

Cummins said: "Everyone's just totally elated. Winning overseas just doesn't happen very often. It's been a real toil for the last 25, 30 days.

"We knew it was going to be totally different to normal life in Australia, under different conditions. And to come away with a series win is hugely satisfying."

Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc ripped through Pakistan on day three of the third Test to leave Australia scenting a series victory at Gaddafi Stadium.

Captain Cummins and fellow paceman Starc were lethal in the evening session as Pakistan collapsed from 214-2 to 268 all out in reply to Australia's 391 in Lahore.

The outstanding Cummins took 5-56 and Starc 4-33, with Babar Azam's side unable to contend with the reverse swing and pace they generated with the second new ball.

Abdullah Shafique (81), Azhar Ali (78) and Babar (67) had put Pakistan in a promising position, but they lost seven wickets in the final session before Australia closed on 11 without loss - leading by 134 runs.

Australia were unable to make a breakthrough in the morning session after Pakistan resumed on 90-1, Shafique and Azhar bringing up their half-centuries as they added 69 runs before lunch.

A second-wicket stand of 150 finally ended when Nathan Lyon got Shafique caught behind following a review, but Steve Smith was unable to take chances to remove Babar on 20 and Azhar, when he had 62 to his name, in the slips as the runs flowed more freely.

Azhar passed 7,000 Test runs, but Pakistan were 214-3 when Cummins took a brilliant catch off his own bowling to end his excellent knock.

Starc then cleaned up Fawad Alam and Mohammad Rizwan as the momentum swung dramatically in Australia's favour after tea, with the magnificent Cummins also conjuring up substantial reverse swing as he saw the back of Sajid Khan, Nauman Ali and Hasan Ali to claim a five-wicket haul.

Babar was trapped leg before by Starc, who then produced a searing delivery that crashed into Naseem Shah's off stump to end Pakistan's innings with a flash. Usman Khawaja and David Warner then saw off three overs as Australia took command.

Cummins and Starc produce pace-bowling masterclass

After spending much of the day toiling with wickets hard to come by once again, Starc and Cummins were at their brilliant best late in the day.

They got the ball swinging, while also bowling perfect lengths at pace to tear through the Pakistan order, taking seven wickets for 20 runs.

Cummins became the first paceman to take a five-wicket haul in the series and his seventh in the longest format, producing a peach of a delivery that Sajid chopped on before pinning Nauman leg before and getting Hasan caught by Smith.

Pakistan crumble after trio build strong foundations

It looked like a first-innings lead was there for the taking for Pakistan courtesy of fine knocks from Shafique, Azhar and Babar.

The trio batted superbly on a good pitch, but the middle order and tail was blown away by Cummins and Starc, with three batters falling without scoring and Rizwan only making one.