Pat Cummins breaks his silence on Justin Langer exit as Australia coach

Australia’s head coach Justin Langer recently stepped down from his position. While many felt that Langer was forced out of the team, CA decided to stay mum and didn’t cleared the speculations. As a matter of fact, the silence of Australian Test captain Pat Cummins drew a lot of rumours as well.

However, the pacer recently broke his silence on Langer’s resignation. Cummins issued a long statement, where he thanked the 51-year-old for his services. He spoke about Langer’s “significant” legacies and said his often-cited “intensity drove a better team culture and higher team standards”.

However, Cummins stated that it is the right time for a change. While mentioning that there was a two-year evaluation, he also said that Langer shouldn’t be surprised with what’s happened.

“I think he tweaked his coaching style in the last six months and did a really good job, but we think now is the right time for a different direction. It’s a matter of opinion but we think it’s the right one. I don’t think he should be surprised though, it’s been two years of evaluation… I don’t think there’s any big surprise,” said Pat Cummins, as quoted by Fox Sports.

The Aussie Test skipper also addressed Mitchell Johnson’s comments on him. He stated that the legendary pacer was just standing for his mates. It is to be noted that Johnson had earlier labelled Cummins as “gutless” as he kept numb about Langer’s resignation.

“I can’t believe a fast bowler’s having a go at me. He’s just standing up for his mates. I absolutely disagree with what he said. No, he hasn’t reached out, but that’s fine. He’s entitled to his opinion, he’s standing up for his mate. I can hold my head high so I’m fine,” he said.