Pat Cummins: Tension between Test and franchise T20 cricket

Australia Test captain Pat Cummins says there is a growing tension between Test and franchise T20 cricket after several team-mates opted out of The Hundred auction because of a home series against Bangladesh in August.

The Hundred organisers hoped to attract major names to its inaugural auction, but none of Australia's Test regulars entered the selection process.

Some Australia white-ball players picked up Hundred deals, with Tim David, Mitchell Marsh and Adam Zampa set to play in this summer's tournament.

"Some of our guys are saying no to a half a million pounds for 20 days' work to go and play those two Test matches against Bangladesh," Cummins told the Business of Sport podcast., external

"It's at a tension point. It has been for a while, but I think it's only growing.

"Something we speak about is how do we make sure we've got our best Australian guys to choose from when we're picking a Test side or an ODI side, because there is so much demand for them elsewhere."

Fast bowler Cummins is captain of Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League (IPL), and the owners of his franchise bought into Hundred side Northern Superchargers, renaming them Sunrisers Leeds.

Cummins' wife Becky is from Harrogate, and he said he would be interested in playing for the franchise.

"We spend a lot of time over in England during the summer," said Cummins.

"All the boys that go and play it love it. Slightly different format; I think it's less than a month long. It looks good fun, so one day I'd like to play."

Cummins is set to miss the start of the IPL, which begins on Saturday, as he recovers from the back injury that ruled him out of all but one Test in their Ashes series win over England.

The Bangladesh series - Australia's first Test assignment since the Ashes ended in January - runs from 13 to 26 August, while this year's Hundred takes place from 21 July to 16 August.

The Tests will be the first between the sides since 2017, while Bangladesh have not toured Australia since their first visit in 2003.

Played outside the traditional Australian season, the matches will be staged in Darwin and Mackay, with the former staging its first Test since 2004 and the latter hosting Test cricket for the first time.

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