The Australian skipper has claimed 309 wickets in 71 Test matches with an stellar bowling average.
The Australian chief selector the selector has stated that skipper Cummins will play a "major part" in the forthcoming England-Australia contest.
Speculation had been growing that the veteran bowler might miss the series due to a stress fracture in his back that had not yet healed.
Initial reports from team management suggested no official announcement had been made regarding whether he would play, with the five-Test series scheduled to begin on November 21 in Western Australia.
The selector shared that his recovery is on track and was "optimistic" about the likelihood of participating.
"It's clear that the window is narrowing and there are permutations around that, not only his injury, but other factors as well," Bailey remarked.
"The outlook is good. [We are] really confident that he's going to play a significant role. Hopefully it's the first Test. Otherwise, we'll adjust."
Previous Setbacks
Cummins was ruled out Australia's limited-overs series against New Zealand and India recently after scans revealed a stress reaction in his back.
He has a history of recurring issues, with recurrences in multiple past seasons forcing him out of three Australian summers in four years.
He emphasized he would be ""aggressive" and "take risks" in his rehabilitation process to make the squad for the contest.
Bailey noted that he did not know if the captain had resumed bowling as part of his comeback but admitted it was "getting tight" for him to regain fitness for the initial match.
Contingency Plans
Should Cummins not be fit, veteran batsman Smith will assume leadership.
The talented all-rounder was withdrawn recently from the national team for their limited-overs matches against the subcontinent side as a preventive step because of an abdominal issue.
Bailey described it as a "slight concern and confirmed that he'll feature in the domestic first-class competition, so will be "ideally positioned to resume bowling."
"We put so much time has gone into creating the schedule for him to participate for the first Test as an dual-role player," the selector detailed.
"Originally, he'd only feature in the initial matches in any case. The way he swings the willow in shorter formats, if it causes any delay for another day, we just made the decision to adopt a safer strategy."
Match Calendar
Australia vs England: The Ashes
Spanning from late 2025 to early 2026
