Australia back star pace trio to play the 2027 WC

The trio aren't part of Australia's white-ball tours to Pakistan and Bangladesh, with each series from this point on acting as a build up to the World Cup. Head coach Andrew McDonald revealed that all three were open to playing both series, but were asked to rest, given Australia's Test-heavy schedule in mind.

And while playing Tests remains top priority, the Australia management is hopeful the trio can stay in top shape for the World Cup, scheduled to be held in South Africa in October-November 2027.

"I think people look at the immediate games and go, 'Well, why aren't they playing there?'" McDonald said.

"But if you actually work back from 2027 and look at what we've got coming up, this is the last significant break that we get to invest into their bodies to set themselves up to get all the way through to 2027. We are planning for them to be there in 2027".

And while McDonald admits keeping them all fit in the lead-up to a tournament still a while away could be a stiff task, he insisted that giving them ample breaks is crucial, even if the players themselves are willing to play.

"I think there needs to be a lot of trust in what we're doing to be able to get them there. It's going to be a significant challenge, in particular for our fantastic (sports science and medical) team, they've done a great job over a period of time," McDonald said.

"I think there's almost a misconception that the players are sort of picking and choosing as to where they play and which series they play in. These decisions are made around the management of what is coming up with in the schedule - and they don't choose that.

"We work with them on it ... those players want to play. We just don't feel like it's the best time for them to play," he added.

The trio have been part of the ongoing IPL 2026, with only Starc's campaign getting over following Delhi Capitals' league-stage exit. All three missed a part of the tournament: while Starc's workload was being managed by Cricket Australia, Cummins took time to recover from his back stress injury, while Hazlewood has been afflicted by hamstring and Achilles injuries.

McDonald took the example of the last edition to show that the trio can be managed. Starc, Hazlewood and Cummins are currently 36, 35 and 33 respectively.

"We have done this before also in 2023," McDonald said about the busy calendar leading up to that year's World Cup. "The biggest difference is we're four years older.

"I think we're well placed if we're fit and healthy. And that's going to be the biggest challenge. How do we get the players through that demand? How do we manage them, in particular our fast bowlers?

"We are getting older, so that's going to create some different management challenges. They've been incredibly robust, a lot of those players, and a few have had a few recent (injury) pickups, so it's something that we need to invest a lot of time into."

He also said that Mitch Marsh, the captain in Cummins's absence, will step aside when the fast bowler returns, saying that the fast bowler "works extremely well" with Marsh, with the latter having the support to step up in case Cummins fails to make it to the 2027 World Cup.

"They're working together, so Pat's invested in the one-day team... we choose not to play him for the benefit of his body. Even on the back of what recently happened (with) his back injury - that probably surprised us - so we know that we need to really make sure we manage him well to get through that.

"It surprised us in terms of how much load - or lack of load - that he had to attribute to a stress-related injury."

McDonald also said the management was open to potentially considering Tim David's return to the ODI setup as an option. The 30-year-old played all of his four ODIs in September 2023. Those were also his last List A matches. It is to be noted that Glenn Maxwell retired from ODIs in 2025, potentially opening up a finisher's role.

"It is something we're looking at," McDonald said. "Tim hasn't made himself available for ODI cricket as yet in amongst everything that he's doing. But open-minded that potentially that is a conversation down the track.

"That would be something that TD would need to come to us and signal his intention to play one-day international cricket. We used him in the build (up) to the last World Cup. TD was someone that we felt could potentially play in that finishing number seven role.

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