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The Australian selection chief Bailey has confirmed that captain Pat Cummins will play a "major part" in the upcoming Ashes series.

There were concerns that Cummins might miss the series due to a ongoing back issue that remained unresolved.

Initial reports from the Australian camp suggested no final decision had been made regarding his involvement, with the Test matches kicking off on 21 November in Perth.

Bailey expressed that the captain is progressing and remained hopeful about the likelihood of participating.

"We know that time is getting short and various factors at play, not only his injury, but additional elements," Bailey remarked.

"We're encouraged. There's strong faith that he's going to play a major part. With luck from the opening match. Otherwise, we'll adjust."

Previous Setbacks

Cummins was ruled out the ODI and T20 games against New Zealand and India recently after scans revealed a lumbar bone stress.

Previous incidents include of recurring issues, with setbacks in 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2015-16 forcing him out of several home seasons in four years.

Cummins stated he would be ""aggressive" and "take risks" in his rehabilitation process to ensure his availability for the series.

He mentioned that it was unclear if he had started his bowling workouts as part of his rehabilitation but admitted it was "pressing" for him to regain fitness for the initial match.

Contingency Plans

In case of absence, veteran batsman Smith will assume leadership.

Versatile player Green was withdrawn recently from the national team for their limited-overs matches against India as a precautionary measure because of discomfort in his torso.

Bailey described it as a "minor" injury and confirmed that he's scheduled to appear in the domestic first-class competition, so will be "in a good place to resume bowling."

"Considerable effort has gone into developing the strategy for him to participate for the first Test as an dual-role player," he elaborated.

"His involvement was limited to the first two ODIs anyway. The way he swings the willow in shorter formats, should it hinder progress for 24 more hours, we opted to adopt a safer strategy."

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